Celebrate life at the Transplant Awareness Fair on May 15

(April 2010) Sukru Emre, MD, director of the Yale-New Haven Transplantation Center, will host the Second Annual Transplant Awareness Fair, a free public event, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday, May 15, on the New Haven Green in New Haven, Conn.

The Transplant Awareness Fair will be an opportunity to celebrate life and to:

• Learn about organ donation and register to become an organ donor.
• Hear donors and patients tell their stories.
• Enjoy refreshments, children’s activities and music by BIG SHOT, The Ultimate Billy Joel Experience, at 1 p.m.

Emre joined Yale Medical Group in 2007 to head up Yale-New Haven Hospital’s multidisciplinary transplantation program, and provide the latest surgeries and clinical trials for transplant patients. Under Emre’s leadership, Yale-New Haven Transplant Center surgeons have performed 104 liver transplants, 247 kidney transplants and seven rare pancreatic transplants. Emre, a liver specialist, performed his 100th surgery in Connecticut in February and wants to increase the pool of potential donors.

Nearly 100,000 Americans are waiting for organs to replace their own damaged or diseased ones. While transplantation surgery saves thousands of lives every year, only a fraction of the people who need a new kidney, liver or heart actually receive one. Other organs and tissues that can be donated include the lungs, pancreas, intestines, corneas, skin, tendons, bone and heart valves.

The rain date for the Transplant Awareness Fair is May 16. For more information about the event, contact Jamy Stenger, 203-688-6437.