Kidney Transplant
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A kidney has 24-48 hours to be transplanted. It's a small, critical window of time that requires teams of experts ready to do their part to make the transplant happen.
At UVA Transplant Center, we've been doing kidney transplants for over 40 years. From our surgeons to our transplant coordinators, you will find team members whose experience in the field and working together gives you the best chance for a successful kidney transplant.
Our team was honored in 2015, with the National Kidney Registry Excellence in Teamwork Award.
If you have advanced renal disease, we know this has been a long, hard road for you. We're here to help you explore your options and find the treatment that best fits you.
Paired Donor Exchange: A Way Forward
Paired donor exchange can involve a number of people across the country. The ultimate goal was to find Veronica a healthy kidney, and that’s exactly what happened.
VERONICA DOWNING: We've been married about 20 years. I met him a long time ago at the Seoul, Korea. He walked in my office by mistake.
- We're still working out that mistake then.
- [LAUGHS]
VERONICA DOWNING: I got kidney failure about first was 20 years ago.
RONALD DOWNING: She's had two transplants. When I first found out that we weren't a match, your heart sinks. Your like, oh no. The doctor told us there is another option. And so you listen when someone says, OK, we're not at the dead end here.
ANITA SITES: Paired kidney donor exchange is when a donor and recipient are not compatible with one another. And there's lots of ways you can be incompatible. It can be a blood typing. It could be when we actually mix some of the donor and recipient's blood together. There could be a reaction that's not suitable.
And so if the donor and recipient are willing, we can enter them into a paired exchange registry where we can try to find a match for that recipient elsewhere at another transplant center. Could be anywhere in the country. And so that recipient gets a kidney from another living donor that is compatible with them. And their donor, who was originally intended for them, their kidney goes to someone else entirely different somewhere else in the United States so that that individual is getting a compatible kidney as well. And the Downings were our first paired exchange transplant here at UVA.
VERONICA DOWNING: When I watched this old medical procedure-- how they thoroughly exam all his health condition from top to the bottom and I really trusted this system. So I think they'll be OK if I'm going to receive someone that I never met. Unknown person will be OK because system was so thorough.
ANITA SITES: Living kidney donation is safe. We thoroughly evaluate all of our kidney donors to make sure that if there's a reason why they shouldn't be a donor or something that's going to put them at increased risk, we're not going to let them be a donor. So that is why our evaluation so thorough. Of course, any procedure has risks associated with it, but living kidney donation has been happening for many decades now and has proven to be safe.
- The paired exchange is more than just two people. It is a unifying of human spirits multiplied many times over. And like-minded people that are willing to go through something like this and remain anonymous, it's a really powerful experience.
VERONICA DOWNING: Every day when I get up in the morning, thank you for another day. And I'm doing my best and make best of it. So my attitude changed. And then this is a new chapter of my life.
Dual Kidney Transplant: Special Options
We offer two types of dual kidney transplants at UVA: donations of 2 kidneys at once and donations from infants. These options expand the number of kidneys we have available for transplant. Learn more about dual kidney transplants.
Living Donation Benefits
A kidney for transplant may come from a living or deceased donor. Living donors are often family members or close friends. The benefits of living donation include:
- A shorter waiting time
- The ability to schedule surgery to accommodate the needs of the recipient and donor
- A kidney from a living donor will likely function longer than one from a deceased donor
Find out about what's involved with a living kidney donation.