Be a living donor; Donating an organ while you are alive helps save more lives. Read the information below to learn what you can donate. The choice is up to you. One out of every four people who donate organs while alive is not related to the person getting the organ. You don’t need to know the person to give them a second chance at life. Living donors offer hope to people who are waiting for an organ from someone who has passed away.
What can a living donor donate?
- Living Donors are able to donate the following:
- One Kidney
- One Lung
- Portion of Liver
- Portion of Pancreas
- Portion of Intestine
Types of Living Donation
- Directed Donation
- The living donor knows the recipient and specifically donates an organ to them.
- Non-Directed Donation
- The living donor is not related or is unknown by the recipient.
- Paired Donation
- Sometimes, people who need a kidney transplant have someone willing to donate, but they are not a good match. In this case, paired donation can help. It involves these people trading donors so that each person gets a kidney from a donor who is a good match.
- Donor Chains
- A chain helps a group of kidney patients who have healthy living donors who are not a match. The whole group or “chain” of kidney patients benefits from living donors.
Who Can Donate?
Any person 18 or older can become a living donor. If you want to be a living donor, learn as much as you can about the process. After that, you can contact a transplant center near you or the center where the patient will get their transplant. The transplant center will run tests to make sure you are healthy enough to be a living donor. Additional information can be found at:
How to Start
To make a direct, paired, or chain donation, please speak with the person on the wait list. Or, reach out to their transplant center. If you want to donate without knowing who gets your kidney, contact a transplant center close to you to see if you can donate.