Eye bank

The team in our eye bank procures, stores and screens donated eye tissue, which is used for corneal transplantation and some glaucoma surgery.

We work with specialist nurses and our own donor co-ordinators at hospitals around London who inform us of potential donors at their sites.  When the potential donor unfortunately dies, we contact the deceased individual's next of kin to offer options for eye donation.  If consent is granted, we retrieve the donor eyes and bring them back to the eye bank at Moorfields Eye Hospital. 

Here, we process, store, quality test and issue the ocular tissues for transplant and/or research purposes.

One pair of donated eyes can provide treatment for up to 10 different people; each cornea can be transplanted, while each sclera (the white tissue around the eye) can be divided in four and used as a patch graft for some      glaucoma surgery patients. With the right consent, we can also use other non-transplantable parts of donated eye tissues for research to develop new treatments for the future.

You can register to become a donor on the NHS organ donor register.  Forms are also available from GP surgeries, chemists and hospitals.  The Human Tissue Act 2004 clarified the consent status of someone who has died,  and your wishes - and those of your family - are paramount. So, please speak to your close family and loved ones to ensure they are aware of your wishes to donate.

Eye bank-become a donor