2. Donation Pros and Cons

Gift of Life

By choosing to become a donor, you’re giving the priceless gift of life to a loved one. By being their living donor, you’re shortening the time they spend in sickness while waiting for a kidney, while increasing their time living a healthy life. At the same time, you’re increasing the likelihood of a successful transplantation, since survival rates are higher when the graft comes from a living donor. Additionally, you’ll be helping another wait-listed patient, since you’ll be opening the spot for the next person on the list when a deceased liver becomes available.

Minimally-Invasive Procedure

Lahey performs laparoscopic surgery on kidney donors. This means that we make three small incisions to insert a camera and surgical tools to remove the kidney, instead of cutting the abdomen open. This reduces discomfort, speeds up the recovery process, and leaves smaller scars than a conventional open surgery. Most donors are discharged from the hospital after 2 nights, and they are expected to return to their normal daily activities within weeks.

We've dedicated a section that outlines the details of the surgery: 10. Donation Surgery.

No Reduced Kidney Function

Most people’s kidney function exceeds the needs of their bodies. This leaves excess capacity that allows for one of the kidneys to be removed and still lead a perfectly healthy life. Due to the rigorous donor screening process, if you are approved, it's because you're very unlikely to develop kidney disease in the future. If there are any suspected risks with the future of a donor’s kidney condition, our transplant evaluation committee will make the decision not to approve them. We cannot allow the donor's life to be put at risk for the benefit of the recipient.

Read the section that outlines the screening process for donors: 6. Donor Evaluations

Low Financial Burden

The donor pays $0 in medical bills. All donation-related costs are covered by the recipient’s insurance company. This includes evaluation exams, hospitalization, surgery, recovery, and donation-related follow-up care, such as clinical assessments and labs.

The only costs incurred by the donor are time spent missing work, lodging (if you’re not a local resident, and need to spend the night nearby) and transportation costs. We offer discounted transportation options in certain cities. Prescription medications after hospital discharge will not be covered by the recipient’s insurance, so if you are uninsured, our financial coordinator can assist with this hardship.

Read the section about donor costs: 3. Financial Details

No Life Expectancy Changes

Donating a kidney does not have an effect on a person’s life expectancy. On the contrary, a 1997 study concluded that people who donate a kidney have been found to outlive the average population. 20 years after donating, 85% of kidney donors were still alive, while the expected survival rate was 66%. This phenomenon may be explained by the fact that only healthy people are approved to become donors, or perhaps donors take additional health precautions after donating.

Possible Complications (Morbidity)

Kidney donation is considered a low-risk procedure, but this does not mean that it is risk-free. Complications occur less than 5% of the time. As with any surgical procedure, there is a small possibility of infection, anesthesia complications, bleeding, blood clots, hernias, or post-op pneumonia. These complications are often short-term, and can be managed by our transplant experts. Our team will teach you how to look for symptoms of complications during your recovery.

Possible Death (Mortality)

The complications mentioned previously may result in the donor passing away. However, these occurrences are extremely rare. The National Kidney Registry reports that in the U.S., only 3 deaths occur out of 10,000 live donor transplants (a 0.03% mortality rate).

Lifestyle Changes

In preparation for kidney donation, you will be asked to make some modifications to your lifestyle to ensure your health and that of the organ you will be donating. You'll be required to attend all your clinic visits, and go through the time-consuming evaluation process, which may affect your work schedule. You'll also need to abstain from recreational drugs and tobacco. Moderate alcohol consumption is allowed until six weeks before surgery.

Our section 9. Countdown to Surgery outlines other preparations you'll need to make prior to surgery.

Donors will be able to return to most normal activities after recovery. The only activities they may never participate in again are contact sports, as damaging the remaining kidney will pose a threat to your health.

Recovery and Pain

After surgery, donors will inevitably go through a recovery period where they feel pain and discomfort. They are expected to be walking the day of surgery, and discharged after 2 or 3 nights in the hospital. Donors may return to work between 2 to 4 weeks after the surgery, and will gradually resume their activities with some restriction.

This timeline has two sections dedicated to the recovery process: 11. In-Hospital Recovery, and 12. At-Home Recovery.