The House of Representatives on Thursday has ratified two landmark agreements with Greece enhancing cross-border cooperation for kidney and lung transplants.

The agreement allows for organ transplant exchanges between incompatible donor-recipient pairs and grant Cypriot patients access to lung transplants at Greece’s Onassis Cardiac Surgery Centre.

It also allows for organs from deceased donors in Cyprus to be used in Greece, broadening donor options with the aim to improve transplant prospects for both Cypriot and Greek patients.

It had initially been signed in Athens in September 2024 with a first agreement focusing on cross-border kidney transplants and a second agreement concerning lung transplants.

Cyprus has a very low number of organ donors in relation to other EU countries with an average of approximately 23 donations per year as former Health Minister Michalis Hadjipantela estimated in 2022.