Can You Donate One of Your Kidneys and Still Live a Normal Life?

Can you donate one of your kidneys and still live? Yes! Learn more about living donor transplants & how donating one of your kidneys won't affect your life.

Can You Donate One of Your Kidneys and Still Live a Normal Life?

People can lead a normal life with just one kidney, as long as the donor is thoroughly evaluated and the donation is authorized. If you have two healthy kidneys, you may be able to donate one of them to improve or save someone else's life. Both you and the recipient of the kidney can live with only one healthy kidney.Considering a living donation can be daunting and challenging for the prospective donor. A kidney transplant from a living donor is an alternative to a kidney transplant from a deceased donor.

A living donor can donate one of their two kidneys, and the remaining kidney can perform the necessary functions. Yes, a living person can donate a kidney to someone they know or to a stranger.The kidneys are the organs most commonly donated by a living donor. Living donors can continue to enjoy an active, healthy life with just one kidney and have a great opportunity to give an invaluable gift to someone in need. Living kidney donation is the most common type of living-donor transplant.

People can donate one of their two kidneys, and the remaining kidney can perform the necessary functions.Because a person can live with only one kidney, a living donation offers another option for some transplant candidates. The average wait time to receive a kidney from a deceased donor is 3 to 5 years. A kidney from a living donor offers patients an alternative to years of dialysis and time on the national waiting list for transplants. With a living donation, a patient can receive a transplant in 1 year or less.After the donation, the living organ donor's remaining kidney will be enlarged, doing the work of 2 healthy kidneys.

If you and your intended recipient of a targeted donation have incompatible or incompatible blood groups, combined organ donation or chain of donation programs may be an option. Donor nephrectomy is a surgical procedure to remove a healthy kidney from a living donor to be transplanted to someone whose kidneys no longer work properly.The risks of live liver donation are also low, but experience with this procedure is more limited because it was introduced into medical practice more recently than kidney donation. Little is known about pregnancy after a live liver donation, as the procedure is newer and less common. However, if you have recurrent kidney stones, this could interfere with the body's ability to filter waste with a kidney.Causes of kidney failure may include diabetes, polycystic kidney disease (PKD), uncontrolled chronic high blood pressure (hypertension), or chronic glomerulonephritis (inflammation and, eventually, healing of the glomeruli, the tiny filters found inside the kidneys).

Transplant centers must submit follow-up data six, 12 and 24 months after donation. Sometimes, the kidney is lost due to rejection, surgical complications, or the original disease that caused the recipient's kidney failure.The University of Kansas Health System has an experienced team that manages kidney transplant care before, during and after surgery. However, living people can also donate tissue for transplants such as skin, bone marrow and blood-forming cells.If you have problems with drug or alcohol abuse, you may not be able to donate your kidney because of how alcohol affects you. Kidney donation does not normally affect your ability to become pregnant or complete a safe pregnancy and delivery.Each donor's motivations can vary greatly, and each donor has a unique experience as they go through the process of donating their kidney - from making the initial decision to be evaluated as a potential donor to years after the donation occurs.

During evaluation, the team will check if the organ you plan to donate is healthy and that removing one of your kidneys or part of your liver is unlikely to cause health problems in the future.

Morris Bievenue
Morris Bievenue

Total internet geek. Hipster-friendly creator. Alcohol trailblazer. Certified food scholar. Alcohol expert. Extreme introvert.

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