Bronx woman receives organ transplant, then donates organ

New York state has an organ shortage, according to transplant advocates, and the overwhelming majority of those waiting for a donation in New York City are people of color.

News 12 Staff

Feb 11, 2021, 1:48 PM

Updated 1,400 days ago

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New York state has an organ shortage, according to transplant advocates, and the overwhelming majority of those waiting for a donation in New York City are people of color.
Ten years ago, Anita Moore received a diagnosis that changed her life in the blink of an eye.
"It happened very quickly," said Moore. "I was working and I noticed I couldn't see so I went to the doctor [and] tried to get glasses and eventually I was diagnosed with keratoconus."
The NYPD officer at the time, needed a cornea transplant to restore her vision.
Of those on the organ transplant waitlist in the Bronx, 92% are people of color and in Brooklyn, 82% are people of color, according to Live On New York.
The Bronx native was fortunate to find a match within a few months, and the surgery was a success, but the number one man in her life was still waiting.
Cortez Moore was on the transplant list for a new liver for eight years. When he took a turn for the worst, his daughter offered up part of her own, going from organ recipient to donor within seven months.
Cortez Moore was able to watch his daughter rise through the ranks to become a detective at the Special Victim's Unit.
"The idea that you're extending somebody's life -- you only have one," said Anita Moore. "And I know my father is absolutely grateful, but I'm just grateful because I feel like I received a gift, also being able to help him."