Living Donor Kidney Transplant
Virtua offers several options for living donor kidney transplant that can shorten your time waiting for a new organ.
With the limited number of available organs, you can spend years waiting for a new kidney. The Virtua Advanced Transplant & Organ Health team works with you to find a kidney from a living donor to shorten your time on the wait list.
Types of Living Donor Kidney Transplants at Virtua
In general, the wait time for a kidney transplant in the South Jersey region can be more than four years.
Living-donor kidneys can be from:
- Family, friends, coworkers, neighbors, or someone who learns of the need through social media
- Anonymous individuals who offer to donate an organ as gesture of compassion to transform another’s life
- Participants in national paired exchange (when incompatible living donor pairs match up, allowing the two donors to switch recipients so the individuals in need receive a new, healthy kidney), chain (involving numerous paired exchanges), and remote donor transplants (which allows donors to complete their testing and transplant surgeries at a center close to home rather than traveling to the recipient’s hospital) through organizations such as the National Kidney Registry
Do Living Donors Need to Be Related to Their Recipients?
No. Today, drugs that prevent the body from rejecting a donor kidney are so effective that the organ doesn’t always need to be a match in tissue type with the recipient. However, the donor’s and recipient’s blood types must still be compatible.
In addition, thanks to pre- and postoperative medication, it is now safe to transplant a kidney from a donor who had hepatitis C into a recipient who does not have the virus. You may discuss this option with your Virtua Advanced Transplant & Organ Health coordinator.
Virtua Kidney Transplant Specialists
At Virtua, you are cared for by a multidisciplinary team of transplant specialists. Our experienced staff provide compassionate, personalized care before, during, and after your transplant.
Living Donor Kidney Transplants at Virtua
We support and encourage living donor kidney transplants. Our team will work with you and your donor to make the testing and transplant procedures as easy as possible.
If you are interested in participation in a paired exchange or remote transplant, speak with your nephrologist and nurse coordinator.
Benefits of Living Donor Kidney Transplant
Living donor kidney transplants greatly increase the number of organs available for those in need. Donors also know that they have contributed to someone else’s life in a meaningful way.
Benefits of living donor kidney transplantation include:
- Less or no wait time on the transplant wait list. Donors and recipients can schedule the surgery in advance, at a time that’s convenient for them. Recipients of deceased-donor kidney can wait years for a call that an organ has been found for them.
- Less time on dialysis. Dialysis treatments are time-consuming and can leave you exhausted. The sooner you are able to get a new kidney, the faster you can return to the life you enjoy.
- Quicker recovery time. A kidney from a living donor usually functions immediately because the organ is out of the body for a very short period of time. As a result, recovery is often shorter, and there is no need to be on dialysis until the kidney begins to function.
- Improved long-term survival. On average, a kidney from a living donor lasts 15 to 20 years. While an organ from a deceased donor will only be given to you if it is healthy and likely to work in your body, on average, it may last 10 to 15 years.
Share Your Spare
Research shows that there are few, if any, long-term effects from kidney donation. In general, you can expect to resume pre-donation activities within four to six weeks.
What to Expect With Living Donor Kidney Transplant
If you have a potential living kidney donor in mind, you may go through the evaluation process together. Living kidney donors should be in good overall physical and mental health and be older than 18 years of age.
Living donor kidney transplants are scheduled in advance. If the donor is someone you know, the donation and transplantation procedures will happen at the same time, often in adjacent operating rooms.
If you are receiving a kidney through a paired exchange or remote transplant program, Virtua will work with the other transplant center to arrange the time of the procedure. A special courier will transport the kidney to Virtua.
Most medical expenses associated with living donor kidney transplants are covered by the recipient’s insurance.
Virtua Kidney Transplant Locations
All organ transplants are performed at Virtua Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital. And with medical offices across the region, transplant evaluations and appointments are never far from home.
The Virtua Difference for Living Kidney Donor Transplant
Committed to shortening your time to transplant
Virtua Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital participated in the first successful paired exchange kidney transplant in the Philadelphia region in 2010. Through paired exchange, remote transplant, and other programs, we progressively work to shorten your time waiting for a new organ, so you can get back to living your fullest life.
Committed to shortening your time to transplant
Virtua Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital participated in the first successful paired exchange kidney transplant in the Philadelphia region in 2010. Through paired exchange, remote transplant, and other programs, we progressively work to shorten your time waiting for a new organ, so you can get back to living your fullest life.
Comprehensive care
We provide coordinated and comprehensive kidney care at every stage of your condition. Virtua is the only provider of kidney, pancreas, and liver transplantation in South Jersey.
Comprehensive care
We provide coordinated and comprehensive kidney care at every stage of your condition. Virtua is the only provider of kidney, pancreas, and liver transplantation in South Jersey.
National recognition
Virtua Advanced Transplant & Organ Health is certified by the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) and is approved by the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
National recognition
Virtua Advanced Transplant & Organ Health is certified by the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) and is approved by the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Advanced surgery for donors
Individuals donating their kidney may undergo robot-assisted surgery, resulting in less postoperative pain, a smaller scar, and a faster return to normal activities.
Advanced surgery for donors
Individuals donating their kidney may undergo robot-assisted surgery, resulting in less postoperative pain, a smaller scar, and a faster return to normal activities.
Lifetime support
All organ transplant donors, recipients and their families are forever part of our family, with lifetime education and follow-up based on your individual needs. In honor of organ donors and recipients, the statue atop Virtua Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital is lit green following every transplant.
Lifetime support
All organ transplant donors, recipients and their families are forever part of our family, with lifetime education and follow-up based on your individual needs. In honor of organ donors and recipients, the statue atop Virtua Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital is lit green following every transplant.
Virtua Kidney Transplant Locations
All organ transplants are performed at Virtua Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital. And with medical offices across the region, transplant evaluations and appointments are never far from home.