Live donor kidney transplantation

There are six main steps to deciding if you can donate a kidney. Some of them involve hospital visits.

Step 1:

• you learn about kidney donation by taking part in an information session with the hospital's live donor team 

• you talk about it with the person you want to donate to (if you know who they are)

• you complete a donor registration and health questionnaire, giving as much detail as you can, and email it to the live donor coordinators.

• the live donor coordinators will check your health questionnaire.

• they may contact you or your GP for more information if they have a concern about your health.

• if your health questionnaire shows you are suitable, you will be asked to make a hospital appointment.

Step 3: the first hospital appointment

First, you will have a telephone appointment to provide information. Then you will have a clinic appointment for a health assessment and compatibility tests. These tests will discover your blood group and human leukocyte antigen (HLA) type. You will get an appointment for a telephone consultation where you will get your results.

Step 4: a telephone appointment to share the results

We allow six weeks for all the results to be available. The compatibility tests take the longest. These are important for knowing whether you can donate directly to your recipient. If your blood results (blood group and HLA type) are not compatible, there is still an option to donate via the UK living kidney sharing scheme providing your health assessment is suitable.

If there are any concerns about your health assessment, the coordinators may contact you before the telephone appointment to:

• repeat one of the tests

• arrange a further investigation

• make an onward referral for treatment or an opinion such as to your GP or a specialist.

You will visit the hospital for another health assessment, which is more in depth than the first health screen. Your live donor co-ordinator will tell you about the different tests you will need.

Step 6 – results, plus medical and surgical assessments

Two weeks after the full-day investigation, you will get your results at an appointment with the live donor consultant nephrologist. They will talk to you about the results and how suitable you are to donate, and the associated risks of donating.

You will also meet the transplant surgeon who will assess you for the operation and explain what happens. They will confirm which kidney will be removed and the type of operation.

If you are found suitable to donate directly to your recipient, a date for the operation will be set.

Follow-up care for live donors

If you become a live kidney donor, you will get care after your operation from the Live donor clinic. The first appointment after your operation will be about 14 days after you leave hospital, at the Live donor clinic at Hammersmith Hospital. The clinic team will check to make sure: you are recovering well, your wound is healing and your remaining kidney is working properly.

For donors in the UK the next donor follow-up appointments are:

• 6 to 8 weeks post operation
• 3 months
• 6 Months
• annual review from then on

For donors from outside the UK:

• you will have a second appointment before you return to your home country
• you will be given a summary to take back for your local healthcare team (GP or hospital)