Hi all. My cousin is married to a fantastic women who is currently on dialysis 4 times a week. She has now been told that she NEEDS to get a new kidney, it's a life or death kind of thing. She is very young, 29, and is a paraolympic medalists. She really is quite fantastic.
She has started a campaign to get a new kidney and I am wondering if anyone knows of the risks involved in donating one's kidney? I don't know if I would even qualify, but if I did I don't know what all the risks are. I am 32 and still want to have one more child, would that make a difference? Anyone have any ideas?
You need to speak to your Doctor, or a Renal Doctor.
Only your doctor would know, YOUR health history.
My Dad was on dialysis... for 3 years. He did not get a transplant and passed away. He would not take my kidney. He did not want to affect my life... but we had the same blood type.
Ask your Doctor.. .and ask him/her all the questions you need to. You need to speak to a medical specialist about it.
All the best,
Susan
L.
This woman's nephrologist (kidney/renal doctor) will refer her to a transplant center. The transplant center will discuss the procedure for a cadaveric (organ from a deceased doner) vs. a living donor (related or non-related). To test a potential donor, the transplant center will test for cross matching and tissue typing which is abit more complex than knowing one's blood type. If found to be a match and the potential donor wishes to proceed, further extensive testing is done to make sure that the donor is physically and emotionally prepared to continue.
The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) is THE place to go online for info. They also have a link to living donations that is quite helpful.
NKF can be found at www.kidney.org
Best of luck to all!
Contact Donate Life NW. They can put you in touch with the right people to talk to. I commend you on your interest. That is amazing. The number is ###-###-####. Good luck!
What a generous impulse! Of course there are risks, as with any major surgery, but recent research suggests that kidney donors have at least as good long-term health as the general population. Speculation is that the screening is so thorough that donors must be in excellent health to begin with.
If you initiate the process, you will be carefully screened for every possible health issue, and even your emotional state will be carefully taken into consideration to help determine if your motives are healthy. I suspect, but don't know, that you will not be accepted as a donor even if you are a good match until you've finished bearing children.
My mother donated a kidney to a friend (in their 50's) - saved her life was a miraculous operation. You have to qualify there are X amount of criteria that you need to match to be a donor to your sister in law. Im my mothers case, she only matched one of the (5 or 6?) criterias and her friend is doing EXCELLENT! Her friend has to be on anti rejection drugs for the rest of her life but that is the least of her worries. My mother was in discomfort for a couple weeks after but has feels just the same as she did before when she had 2 kidneys.
My sister in law also donated her kidney to her twin sister (was her sisters 3rd kidney transplant) when she was in highschool. They were ofcourse an identical match because they were identical twins. The surgery went GREAT and her sister is alive and thriving now because of it. My sister in law went on to marry my brother and have 2 children of her own. Healthy as a horse, it created no complications for her.
Seeing the miracle of life be given to two people in my life for a small discomfort on the donors side has made me want to donate mine sometime in my life. If I had someone close to me I would do it in a heart beat, but until then I'm holding off until I encounter someone who needs it. Good luck in your decision, the first step is finding out if your even a match. Then they look to see if you have two! Some people are born with only one kidney and never know it.
Iam very sorry to hear about that situation, i have a father who is 85 and avoiding dialysis, with a very strict diet, doctor told us 3 years ago if he stays on the diet he won't be on dialysis.unlike you i had a girlfriend that had a kidney transplant, the donor did fine as long as you avoid as much salt as you can, salt is a weapon for all kidneys as time passes.
Too much packaged foods are bad for the kidneys.
As for my girlfriend she passed away 4 years after the transplant, she had to take alot of pills for rejection and as the years went by her new kidney just took its toll.
So if you or anybody donates a kidney, you will be fine.
Best of luck, lori
Hi,
I heard on the radio the other day that they did a study on people had donated kidney's and they compared their life expectancy to those who had two kidney's. They found that donating a kidney didn't make any difference in the length of life against those with two kidneys. Of course this doesn't take into impact other issues that you can get anyhow. I know several people who live with one kidney and yes there is always risk with surgery to donate the kidney but so far so good for them.
Good luck to her. I hope that she can find a donor.
D.
My mother is on dialysis and was just placed on the transplant list as well.
She lives in Europe, so the laws are different. Living donors aren't usually considered until her health takes a turn for the worse and dialysis will not be enough any more.
We have discussed the whole thing and her nephrologist mentioned that though having donated a kidney is no contraindication for a later pregnancy, ideally I would be done having children.
Discuss the issue with your doctor... and maybe your insurance company. Mine will not pay for any of the cost associated with organ donation (they only pay for surgery to receive an organ). Sometimes transplant centers will cover the cost for the donor, but you still have lost wages etc.
You doctor will be able to go over the risks with you. We are talking major surgery under anesthesia with all of the associated risks of that...
I love my mother, but honestly, I am happy that I do not have to face that decision at this point.
Good luck!
alot of risks are involved but i can say you would be her angel to even just get tested to see if you would be a match. my husband has been on dialysis for the past 5 years and we still continue to wait for a kidney. it would save her from all the problems that come with being on the transplant list if you are a match. they usually prefer that
you to be done having children,but our ob/gyn thinks that if we watched everything that it would be fine, and we could still have a healthy baby (when he gets his strength back, i am going to get tested to see if we would be a match).
A kidney transplant can often last 25 years. That's a lot of life. I don't know how old your other child is or if your cousin can wait until you have had one more child. I would have my next baby first. Kidneys are the organ responsible for toxemia of pregnancy and high blood pressure.
My aunt who is 93 was born very premature. She has only one kidney and she was pregnant twice. Until she was in her mid 80's no one knew she only had one kidney.
Life is a wonderful gift, and even considering this shows what a special person you are. As for the risks, you need to talk to a doctor who can lay it all out for you. You do not have to go to her doctor if you are not ready for her to know you are considering this, go to your own personal doctor and they can help you find all the information you need.
