Donating is Safe -- and Detailed

Through medical advancements such as sophisticated donor test and robotics, living-donor kidney transplants are safe --- with donor in-hospital recovery times averaging just a day or two. 

 

And, according to the National Kidney Foundation, living donors report a boost in self-esteem -- while 9 out of 10 donors say they would do it again. 

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Both Mike and his heroic sister-in-law donor (Sue Handfield) had their surgeries conducted at the Mayo Clinic Transplant Center in Phoenix, the largest integrated transplant provider in the United States, a leader in living-donor kidney transplants and a participating National Kidney Registry (NKR) transplant center. 

 

Through their experiences at the Mayo Clinic, the Handfields learned these fundamental donor facts:  

• Donors must be at least 18 years old and in good physical and mental health.

• After initial confidential screenings (allowing potential donors to privately opt-out at any time), kidney donors go through detailed testing which includes blood tests to check for blood type compatibility.  

• These blood tests help donors decide what type of donors they will become.  If they are blood type compatible with their known recipients, they can donate directly and become Directed Donors.  If their blood types are incompatible, they can become Non-Directed Donors (which can entitle them to  "vouchers" for use by family members and/or non-family member through NKR-aligned transplant centers should THEY need transplants in the future).  Or, donors can decide to be part of the Paired Exchange program whereby incompatible donor-recipient pairs (usually spouses or relatives) swap kidneys with other incompatible pairs to create compatible matches for both recipients.  While this program is innovative, it's also complex and could take more time.      

• Plus, early on, donors will be offered the assistance of Donor Advocates to represent their health needs, assist in insurance issues and help them with other personal interests, every single step of the way --- independent of the transplant recipients and their families.      

• From there, full medical exams and more tests are conducted until everyone feels that this is the right action to take.

 

Donating a kidney is safe, detailed --- and heroic.