www.Ups tatePhys i c i ansSC . com | www.Hea l thL i nksUps tate. com | 49 10 years, compared with 15 years for a living donor transplant. In some circumstances, kidneys from living donors have been known to last as long as 40 years. Herndon, the first contact for patients and donors, shepherds them through the testing process and delivers the good or bad news. But as a “fixer,” she doesn’t believe in giving up. That’s where paired donation comes in. “We still work them up and get them approved to donate, but they don’t donate directly to the person they know,” she explained. The paired program is a nationwide network that connects approved donors with waiting recipients across the country who also have donors who are not a match for them. “We do an even swap. The donor here donates to the other patient, and their donor donates to the patient here,” Herndon explained. Donors are reminded that they can withdraw any time, right up until the gurney rolls into the operating room – and donors do back out. In the cases of altruistic donors – those who don’t know the recipient – it’s less problematic. But when it’s a couple or family members and the donor decides to withdraw, transplant coordinators like Herndon offer a reasonable cover story to protect relationships. Nine South Carolina patients received their kidney transplants so far this year through the paired donation program. Overwhelmingly, however, most transplants come from deceased donors. Dr. Todd Merchen, director of the Prisma Health Transplant Center, urges people to sign up to be an organ donor. “Organ procurement is a difficult conversation no matter what,” he explained. “If you can bring yourself to make that decision and take the responsibility off your loved ones, it would lead to more organ transplants and families with more certainty about what to do – and less stress on what the worst day of their lives is already.” As for Self, she went home four days after surgery and went back to her job as a Greenville County special education teacher after six weeks. Would she do it again? “Yes. And for the same reason: I could not sit back and watch my friend die knowing I could have helped her.” Source: All the statistics in this article come from the United Network for Organ Sharing (https://unos.org/data/). ACTION STEPS Anyone interested in talking about living kidney donation should call the Prisma Health Transplant Center at 864-455-1770. To register as an organ donor: donatelifesc.org/registration/begin-registration/ Living donors may lose time from work as they recover. The National Living Donor Assistance Center provides support to help offset costs or lost wages. You can make a donation to help the center at: interland3.donorperfect.net/weblink/weblink.aspx?name=E342202&id=4 Learn more about becoming a donor at: livingdonorassistance.org CRITERIA TO BE A LIVING DONOR • Cannot have any condition that would be transmissible to the recipient; • Must have normal kidney function; • Must not have any condition that could damage your remaining kidney; • Cannot be coerced or financially compensated for your donation; • Must want to give freely of your own free will; • Must have suitable anatomy – two symmetrical kidneys. THE POTENTIAL CONSEQUENCES OF DONATING A KIDNEY • The donor goes from 100% kidney function to 50%. The remaining kidney will grow stronger and provide about 60% to 70% function. You only need about 10% of kidney function to stay healthy. So barring developing serious kidney disease – not a consequence of the surgery – you should still have more than you need. • A chance of a slight increase of about 5 points on your blood pressure. • Potential of developing proteinuria. This is normal for donors but a sign of kidney disease for the general population. This can lead to challenges with insurance companies. Dr. Superdock promises to “fight for any patient” in this situation but has never been called to do it. • You're living with one kidney. Take care of it. Source: Dr. Keith Superdock PROFILE OF SOUTH CAROLINA LIVING DONORS IN 2022 TOP 3 REASONS FOR KIDNEY FAILURE IN SOUTH CAROLINA – JUNE 2021 1) Diabetes 32% 2) Hypertension 27% 3) Glomerular disease 19% (Editor’s Note: This story is the second in a three-part series of articles on kidney transplants, kidney health and disease prevention. The series concludes in the January/February issue of HealthLinks Magazine. • 85% are white • 10% are Black • 2% are Asian • 2% are Hispanic • 42% are 35-49 • 33% are 50-64 • 16% are 18-34 • 8% are 65+ • 46% are related by blood or marriage • 18% are paired donations • 35% are no relation
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