The Lions Eye Donation Service was founded in 1991 as a collaboration between CERA, The Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital (RVEEH), The University of Melbourne and the Victorian Lions Foundations Inc. (and its predecessors) to manage corneal donation in Victoria.

It has since undertaken more than 7000 corneal donations and provided eye tissue for over 15,000 transplants. It has also evolved into a joint venture between the RVEEH and CERA and continues to receive philanthropic support from the Victorian Lions Foundation Inc.

The Lions Eye Donation Service (LEDS) mainly allocates donated eye tissue for transplantation to patients in Victoria and Tasmania. It also sends eye tissue to other parts of Australia and New Zealand when needed. If consented, eye tissue can also be used to help medial research, training and service development.

The service currently provides tissue for around 530 corneal transplants and 300 scleral transplants in Australia and New Zealand, plus around 150 research and training samples per year.

Among its achievements, LEDS was the first Australian eye bank to introduce organ culture preservation in 2005 and, later, the first to provide specially prepared tissue (called DMEK and DSAEK). LEDS established its research allocation arm, the CERA Biobank, in 2013.

LEDS supports eye donors and their families through a collaborative relationship with DonateLife Victoria, DonateLife Tasmania, the Donor Tissue Bank of Victoria and many hospitals around Victoria and Tasmania.

LEDS is a founding member of the Eye Bank Association of Australia and New Zealand – the peak body for eye donation and transplants in Australia and New Zealand. It is also the founding developer of the Global Alliance of Eye Bank Associations.

Our team

• Head – Dr Heather Machin
• Medical Director – Professor Mark Daniell
• Quality Manager – Bronwyn Cohen
• Administration Assistant – Maria Christofi

Donor Coordinators:

• Dr Prema Finn
• Terry Couper
• Gavin de Loree
• Adrienne Mackey
• Jenna Vartiainen