Living kidney donors save lives and shorten the transplant waiting list
Nationwide almost 90,000 people are on the transplant waiting list to get a kidney from a deceased donor. Some people wait up to five years for a match. Without healthy kidney function, people can become very sick. About 20 people die every day waiting for an organ transplant of any kind.
One way to potentially shorten waiting time and have a better outcome is to get a kidney from a living donor. Friends or family members might offer to donate one of their two healthy kidneys. Minnesota also has a high rate of altruistic donors – people who sign up to give a kidney to a stranger out of the goodness of their hearts, said Raja Kandaswamy, MD, kidney transplant program director and a professor at the University of Minnesota Medical School. Kandaswamy tells us more about becoming a living kidney donor.
Why are living kidney donations healthier?
Kidneys from living donors are considered the gold standard. First, they last 20 to 25 years on average once transplanted. Deceased donor kidneys last 15 to 20 years on average. That means people who get a kidney transplant might need two or even three transplants in their lifetime.
Kidneys from deceased donors may be stressed from being transferred between hospitals. This can temporarily reduce organ function. Kidneys from deceased donors can take days or weeks to become fully functional after the transplant. This prolongs the need for dialysis and makes the recipients more vulnerable to complications after surgery.
Kidneys from living donors tend to function immediately and tend to be healthier because living kidney donors are evaluated for their kidney function, compatibility, and overall health.
Other advantages of a living kidney donation include:
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Scheduling the surgery in advance. The donor and recipient can plan their surgery dates, which can ensure that they have time off work or help at home during their recovery period. When a recipient gets a kidney from a deceased donor, surgery must take place as soon as a kidney becomes available.
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Reduced wait times. Receiving a kidney from a friend or family member means the recipient can skip the line and get a new kidney quicker.
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More kidneys become available. With each successful living donor transplant, one person is removed from the waiting list for a deceased donor. That helps reduce wait times for everyone.
Finding a donor
Getting a kidney from a living donor might go smoothly if a loved one is willing and able to donate – and is also a match. Sometimes they aren’t compatible due to having different blood types. But that person can still donate on your behalf and help you get a kidney sooner. The solution is a paired exchange.
A paired exchange allows would-be recipients with incompatible donors to match up with other donor-recipient pairs in the same situation. Sometimes paired exchanges become donation chains with several donors and recipients involved.
In 2015, an altruistic donor at M Health Fairview University of Minnesota Medical Center started a chain that gave 36 people kidneys. Chains take a lot of coordination since they can involve dozens of surgeries between several transplant centers.
Learn more about becoming a living kidney donor get more information. Just getting the information does not oblige you to donate, but it can help you decide if it’s right for you. Every donor goes through medical testing to ensure that it’s safe for them to donate.
Best in the nation for kidney transplant matches
Nationally, M Health Fairview leads transplant centers for highest matches. In 2023-2024, our system completed 35 high match transplants, the most in the nation, according to Kidney For Life. That means the recipients’ body is less likely to reject the transplant and the kidney could last longer, reducing the need for subsequent transplants.
Since matching a recipient with a kidney that’s the right size and blood and tissue type for them can extend the lifetime of the kidney, the M Health Fairview team is focusing on match making.
“It's an ambitious project to create the best match for the best recipient,” Kandaswamy said. “So that one kidney that can last them a lifetime. It's a bit of a lofty goal, like curing cancer, but the goal is to maximize the outcome.”
