From the Heart: Thousands join donor register

In February, we launched an exciting new campaign to help save thousands of lives and we asked for your help. Every day three people will die waiting for a transplant, due to the desperate shortage of donor organs. There are currently 10,000 people waiting for a transplant, and none of them know whether they will get the call in time - life is a lottery on the transplant list and we wanted to try and change it.

Our From the Heart campaign aimed to increase the number of people on the organ donation register. You signed up in your thousands and the number of people registering in the Meridian region was particularly high. During our week-long campaign 9,055 people added their names to the register in our region, compared to just 818 during the same period in 2012.

Sam Yates's story is what prompted so many people to sign up to the organ donor register - at just 27 she needed a double lung transplant and time was running out. But tragically for Sam - a suitable organ was not found in time and she passed away.

We saw the difference a transplant can make, and met those lucky enough to get the call, like Emily Thackray, who despite having a double lung transplant has gone on to get married, return to work and is about to become a mum - her story is incredible.

We also asked why there are fewer donors from ethnic minorities, what it means for patients and explored some of the myths that surround carrying a donor card.

So would you be prepared to offer someone the gift of life? Pauline Holmes did when her son died. She has now met some of the recipients and tells us how it's helped her through the grieving process and make her realise his death was not in vain.

We still need your support - if you wish to donate your organs and you want more information, go to www.itv.com/fromtheheart.