Nearly one-third of Japanese want to donate their organs in the event of brain death but only 4 percent constantly carry organ donor cards, the Prime Minister's Office said Saturday, citing a government poll.

In the nationwide survey conducted in May, 32.6 percent of the 2,157 respondents indicated willingness to donate their organs, while only one in eight were carrying cards that grant permission for their organs to be transplanted, the office said.

Researchers contacted 3,000 people aged 20 or over for the survey, and 71.9 percent responded.