CEBU, Philippines - Giving a kidney to a family member can be one of life’s most rewarding experiences.
For many families, this gift has meant restored health to the kidney recipient and closer family ties. The decision to donate a kidney is a serious one. Every patient and potential donor must know as much as possible about the potential benefits and problems of kidney transplant.
According to REDCOP or the Renal Disease Control Program of the Department of Health, the benefits of organ donation include saving lives, quality of life and cost effectiveness.
Organ transplantation gives people, who would otherwise die, a second chance to live.
For people who depend on dialysis machines, it means the return to a normal, productive lifestyle. Organ transplantation can be more economical on the long term than other forms of medical treatment. Kidney transplantation, for example, replaces the need for ongoing dialysis costs.
Through a REDCOP training module, it was further learned that kidneys for transplantation may come from a living donor or a person who has recently died (cadaver).
Generally, it pointed out, a kidney from a relative or friend is more desirable than a cadaver kidney. A close match between the tissues of the donor and recipient increases the chance of the recipient’s body’s acceptance of the donated kidney.
Why are living donor kidneys preferable? Kidneys from live donors are removed under ideal conditions and the donor is expected to be in optimal health. It added that when these conditions are met, the donated kidneys usually function immediately and the occurrence of rejection is less likely.
As a result, the recipient experiences better kidney functions for a longer period of time.
The next question is who can be a living donor. To which the training module has pointed out that any health family member, between the ages of 18 and 70 years old, whose blood type and HLA tissue typing are compatible with the recipient’s, may be considered as a possible kidney donor. A related donor is a blood relative: parent, child, sibling, half-sibling, aunt, uncle or cousin. Males may donate to females and females may donate to males, this was also further stressed.
The donation of a kidney must be a voluntary act, REDCOP underlined.
The family members determine who is willing to be considered for donation. The individual circumstances of each potential donor are evaluated. After the situation of each of the potential donors has been carefully considered, the specific person best suited to make the donation is determined by a series of blood tests.
However, if a blood relative is unable to donate, a spouse or an “emotionally related” person may be considered as donor. In these cases, careful consideration is given to such factors as the motives, long-term emotional bonds, and the psychological implications for both donor and recipient. As in all transplants, the patient should discuss these issues with the nephrologist (a doctor who specializes in the study of kidneys and treatment of kidney ailments).
Each case is evaluated on an individual basis, as not all transplant centers are willing to perform living-unrelated transplants.
So, how is a good match determined? A good match is obtained when the donor and recipient have compatible blood types and share similar genes. The more closely related two people are, the more likely their blood and body tissues will be alike.
As for donor evaluation, one may qualify as a donor if he/she is in good general health and has good renal function. He must not suffer from high blood pressure, cancer or diabetes.
In the event that a person decides to pursue donation, the transplant team will refer him to a nephrologist or qualified physician. A thorough evaluation will be performed on him to make sure that he is not only in excellent health but also truly motivated to become a donor.