A Donated Kidney Can Be A Life-Saving Gift … And Now It’s Safer Than Ever To Give

The decision to donate a kidney is one that doesn’t come lightly for anyone — but for the recipient, it often represents the priceless gift of life.

If you’ve ever considered taking that step, you’ve probably weighed the risks of undergoing major surgery. But a new study determined that it’s safer than ever before.

Hear it from the experts

Recent research conducted on a large group of kidney donors found that their average risk of dying during the process or as a direct result of the procedure is roughly half what it was just 10 years ago. And it’s worth noting that the process has always had a relatively low risk of severe adverse effects.

NYU Langone Health transplant surgeon Dr. Dorry Segev was a lead author of the study and succinctly encapsulated the results, concluding: “It’s just becoming safer and safer for people to donate.”

Why the risks are declining

As the researchers determined, modern healthcare is responsible for ensuring that more kidney donors and recipients are able to live full, healthy lives after the process is complete.

Specifically, the surgical process has become more precise and the care that is required after the transplant is now far more advanced than at any point in the past.

While the odds of dying after donating a kidney aren’t zero, they’re quite low. Out of 164,593 kidney donations between 1993 and 2022, the research found just 36 donors died within 90 days of the procedure. Between 1993 and 2012, the mortality rate hovered around 3 in 10,000 … but in the decade that followed, that rate dropped to less than 1 in 10,000.

With about 90,000 U.S. patients currently on the kidney transplant waiting list, doctors hope the improving odds will lead to an increase in donations.

Chris Agee August 29th, 2024

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