Living Kidney Donor Program

At MU Health Care, living kidney donors help save lives — and we’re here to support you from your first call to full recovery.

If you’re considering donating a kidney, our team is here to support you through the entire process. We provide expert care and guidance, as well as individual advocates for each donor to ensure a safe and informed path to donation.

Living kidney donation can make a real difference for someone with kidney failure. Living donation often leads to better outcomes, shorter wait times (from years to months) and longer survival of the kidney after transplant (30+ years). But more importantly, it needs be the right decision for you, the donor. That’s where our team can help.

At MU Health Care, our Living Kidney Donor Program makes the process clear, thoughtful and focused on your well-being and health. We’ll take the time to get to know you, answer you questions and make sure donation, if right for you, feels comfortable.

If you choose to move forward with donating a kidney, you’ll not only have a dedicated team through evaluation, surgery and recovery, but also throughout your lifetime after donation.

Living Kidney Donor Program at MU Health Care

Becoming a kidney donor is a very personal decision. Whether you’re helping a loved one or someone you haven’t met, our team is at your side.

You can live a healthy life with one kidney. In fact, life expectancy after donation is the same as people with two kidneys — because one kidney is enough to meet the body’s needs.

People with end-stage renal disease, or ESRD, have two main treatment options:

Dialysis
A kidney transplant (from a deceased or living donor)

How Living Kidney Donors Make a Difference

Living donation is life-changing, both for the person receiving your kidney and for you.

Most people on the transplant list wait years for a kidney. By becoming a living donor, you could help them get one much sooner and possibly avoid dialysis altogether.

Living donor kidneys tend to start working right away, with better long-term outcomes. They also last longer and have higher success rates than kidneys from deceased donors.

Am I a Candidate to Be a Kidney Donor?

Becoming a living kidney donor is completely voluntary. You can change your mind at any time in the process — confidentially and without pressure.

You may be eligible to donate if:

You’re between the ages of 18 and 70.
You’re in good overall physical and mental health.
You don’t have uncontrolled high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer, certain infections or organ disease.

Gender and race are not factors in candidacy for becoming a living kidney donor. Even if your blood type doesn’t match, donation may still be possible through Kidney Paired Donation (KPD).

Our Approach to the Living Kidney Donor Program

At MU Health Care, we recognize the profound impact of kidney donation and are committed to supporting you throughout this journey.

Since 1972, we’ve performed more than 1,000 kidney transplants, with outcomes that consistently exceed national averages. Our average kidney transplant rejection rate is less than 10%, which is better than the national average of approximately 15%.

In recent years, we’ve also made recovery easier with shorter hospital stays and faster healing so you can return to your routine sooner.

Your Safety Comes First

Donor safety is our top priority. Before surgery, you’ll go through thorough testing — and retesting — to make sure you’re in good health and ready to donate.

Living kidney donation is generally safe, but like any major surgery, it comes with some risks. Although the risk level is low, donating a kidney may increase your chances of developing kidney failure later in life and having increased consequences from hypertension and diabetes.

If you’re planning to become pregnant, it is generally recommended to wait at least six months after donation to give your body time to heal.

Our Care Team Guides Every Step

From your initial consultation to post-donation follow-up care, we make sure your generous gift is honored and protected. Depending on your needs, your care team may include: