Like "Uber for Organs": A Drone Offers a Kidney to a Maryland Woman

"I feel very lucky, especially after seeing so many people on dialysis," she said. "I see a lot of people dying and I say to myself," It takes so long that it can not happen to me either. "

Dialysis can be stressful for the body and does not cure kidney disease. The life expectancy of dialysis patients varies widely, but the average is five to ten years, according to the National Kidney Foundation. Kidney transplants can improve life expectancy and quality of life, but many people who have one eventually need another.

The Unified Organ Sharing Network, which runs the American transplant system, says that while the need for organs far outweighs the supply, donations are reaching historic highs. From January to March this year, 9,500 transplants were performed in 4,500 donors.

But there are still about 75,000 people authorized to undergo surgery and waiting for donations of organs. Counting patients who are not eligible for surgery, more than 113,000 people are waiting for organs.

The shortage of organs has deadly consequences. In 2017, according to the agency, more than 6,500 applicants died while they were on the waiting list or within 30 days of their departure from the list for personal or medical reasons without receive transplant. This makes it all the more irritating the notion of an organ that becomes less healthy during transit, Dr. Scalea said.

The drone used in this month's test had propellers and emergency engines, dual batteries and a parachute retrieval system, to protect against disasters if any of the components encountered a problem at 400 feet in the air. Two ground pilots monitored it with the help of a wireless network and were ready to override the automated flight plan in case of emergency. The drone also had built-in devices for measuring temperature, barometric pressure and vibration, among other indicators.

Mr Scalea described the theft as "proof of concept that this defective system can be innovated".

He added that current organ transport is "blind to data", which means that doctors often can not see the progress of an organ in transit. The drone allows quick updates on its progress, on how you could track a taxi coming up on your phone.