| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 1954 | First successful kidney transplant performed. |
| 1966 | First simultaneous kidney/pancreas transplant performed. |
| 1967 | First successful liver transplant performed. |
| 1968 | First successful isolated pancreas transplant performed.
First successful heart transplant performed. The Southeast Organ Procurement Foundation (SEOPF) is formed as a membership and scientific organization for transplant professionals. |
| 1977 | SEOPF implements the first computer-based organ matching system, dubbed the "United Network for Organ Sharing." |
| 1981 | First successful heart-lung transplant performed. |
| 1982 | SEOPF establishes the Kidney Center, the predecessor of the UNOS Organ Center, for round-the-clock assistance in placing donated organs. |
| 1983 | First successful single-lung transplant performed.
Cyclosporine introduced.* |
| 1984 | National Organ Transplant Act (NOTA) passed.**
The United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) separates from SEOPF and is incorporated as a non-profit member organization. |
| 1986 | First successful double-lung transplant performed. UNOS receives the initial federal contract to operate the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN). |
| 1987 | First successful intestinal transplant performed. |
| 1988 | First split-liver transplant performed. |
| 1989 | First successful living donor liver transplant performed. |
| 1990 | First successful living donor lung transplant performed. |
| 1992 | UNOS helps found Donate Life America to build public support for organ donation.
UNOS prepares first-ever comprehensive report on transplant survival rates for all active U.S. transplant centers. |
| 1995 | UNOS launches its first Web site for all users with an interest in transplantation. |
| 1998 | First successful adult-to-adult living donor liver transplant performed. |
| 1999 | UNOS launches UNetsm, a secure, Internet-based transplant information database system for all organ matching and management of transplant data. |
| 2000 | U.S. Department of Health and Human Services publishes Final Rule (federal regulation) for the operation of the OPTN. |
| 2001 | For the first time, the total of living organ donors for the year (6,528) exceeds the number of deceased organ donors (6,081). |
| 2006 | UNOS launches DonorNetsm, a secure, Internet-based system in which organ procurement coordinators send out offers of newly donated organs to transplant hospitals with compatible candidates. |
*Cyclosporine was the first of a number of drugs that effectively treat organ rejection by suppressing the human immune system.
**The National Organ Transplant Act (P.L. 98-507) established the framework for a national system of organ transplantation.