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You can offer to become a living donor. This could help save the life of your loved one or someone else.
A living donor is someone who donates a kidney or partial liver to another person who has end-stage kidney disease or liver failure.
Living donors can be:
- a blood relative of the person (parents, siblings, adult children)
- someone who is not related by blood but knows the person, like a partner or friend
- an altruistic donor – someone who anonymously donates a kidney to a person on the transplant waiting list.
Kidney and liver transplants from living donors
Living donors go through extensive testing to check their suitability to donate. The donor must be in good physical and psychological health. Donors cannot be coerced, paid or otherwise rewarded for donating. The donor must show they are fully aware of the risks and benefits of the donation.
Living donor liver transplants are less common than living kidney transplants because the donation process is riskier. When it does occur, it usually involves a parent donating a part of their liver to their child. Adult-to-adult living liver transplants are rare.
Donating a kidney
If your loved one needs a kidney transplant, you can offer to donate one of your kidneys as a living donor.
If your kidney is compatible, then a transplant could occur. But even if your kidney isn’t compatible, you can still help them through a paired kidney exchange. In Australia, this program is called the Australian and New Zealand Paired Kidney Exchange (ANZKX).
A paired kidney exchange finds matches for people:
- who are eligible for a kidney transplant
- who have a living donor who is willing to donate
- whose living donor is unable to donate to their loved one because their blood or tissue type is not compatible
- whose living donor meets the criteria for kidney donation.
The program uses a purpose-built computer system to match pairs of registered donors and recipients. If a compatible match is found, two or more simultaneous transplants can occur by exchanging donated organs.
Support for living donors
If you do become a living donor you will need time to have the necessary tests and to recover after the operation. This may mean taking time off work. Financial support is available from the Supporting Living Organ Donors Program.
More information
Kidney Health Australia provides helpful information and a helpline. We also have specific information available for patients as well as healthcare workers about the ANZKX program.
