About the Living Donor Program

Hackensack University Medical Center has one of the top two fastest-growing kidney transplant programs in the nation since 2015— and is one of only a few certified transplant centers in New Jersey. Our Living Donor Program was developed to promote living donation as the best option for patients who need a kidney transplant due to chronic kidney disease.

By combining their experience with surgical skill, research and innovation, our specialists have developed donor matching protocols that allow them to connect more kidney transplant candidates with living donors and perform more life-saving transplant surgeries. We offer several living donation options, including:

• Directed living donor related transplantation
• Directed living donor unrelated transplantation
• Living donor kidney exchange program (for patients who have a willing living donor who is not compatible with them)
• Nondirected living donation (donation from an altruistic person unknown to the recipient)

In 2018, our board-certified transplant surgeons performed 25 living donor kidney transplant procedures, up from 14 procedures in 2017. Our kidney transplant success rates, as well as our living donor survival rates, are better than or consistent with national averages.

About Our Kidney Exchange Program

When a living donor is incompatible with their intended recipient because their blood types are not compatible, or they have an incompatible crossmatch, the pair has the option to participate in our Kidney Exchange Program.

In the past, an incompatible pair had no alternative, and the potential recipient’s only option was to stay on the deceased donor wait list. Now, our Kidney Exchange Program uses paired donation to make it possible for incompatible pairs to enjoy the many benefits of living donation. Paired donation is an option that matches incompatible donor-recipient pairs with other incompatible pairs, and the recipients then “exchange” donors.

Hackensack University Medical Center offers paired donation for all incompatible donor-recipient pairs in our transplant center. We perform paired exchange within our transplant center and partner with other organizations to provide a larger pool of incompatible pairs for potential exchange transplants.

While you are waiting for a paired exchange from our affiliated registries, the specialists at Hackensack University Medical Center will be looking at the incompatible pairs within our program to see if there is another pair that could potentially participate in an exchange.

About the Living Donation Process

If you are living with progressive, chronic kidney disease or kidney failure, you may be a candidate for a kidney transplant. Your case will be thoroughly evaluated and shared with a team of kidney and transplant specialists, who will carefully consider your medical details and personal preferences before making a recommendation about the best course of action for you.

Our team will help determine if your insurance requires a referral. If so, we will contact your primary physician’s office to obtain a referral. If your insurance does not require a referral, you, a family member, or your physician’s office may make an appointment directly with us.

Required Testing

If your team determines that a kidney transplant is your best option, you will need to have special blood tests to match a donor organ for you. Among the tests performed will be blood and tissue typing and disease testing. You may also need to have heart and lung function tests, cancer screenings, and other evaluations depending on your circumstances.

After all your tests are completed, the transplantation team will meet to review the results and decide whether you’re medically eligible for transplantation. Some medical conditions, such as severe uncorrectable heart disease, recent cancer (other than basal cell skin cancer), and other conditions that may pose a high risk of death during the immediate transplant period will prevent you from being deemed medically eligible for transplantation.

Living Donation

If you have a willing living donor, he or she will have the opportunity to attend educational sessions, meet our team members and talk to transplant recipients. Your living donor will also need to go through the evaluation process to determine if his or her kidney is a match and if he or she is medically eligible for transplant surgery.

If you and your living donor are incompatible, you will have the option to participate in a paired kidney exchange through our Kidney Exchange Program. We perform paired exchange within our transplant center and partner with other organizations to provide a larger pool of incompatible pairs for potential exchange transplants.

Our multidisciplinary team — which includes board-certified transplant surgeons, nephrologists, pathologists, radiologists, urologists, and gastroenterologists, along with pharmacists, social workers, transplant nurse coordinators, nurse practitioners, dietitians, tissue-typing specialists, and other dedicated support staff — with work with you and your donor to provide high quality care that optimizes transplant success.

Supportive Services

Most transplant candidates and living donors have many questions and concerns surrounding the procedure and their health and lifestyle afterward, so you’ll also be evaluated to identify any needs for mental health and support services. And, to ensure you understand and have access to the financial resources specific to your care, a Financial Counselor will work with you and your family.

Surgical and Post-Surgical Care

If you and your living donor are compatible, you will be scheduled for surgery. If you and your living donor are not compatible and are participating in the Kidney Exchange Program, a member of our team will contact you when a matching organ is available. During the surgical and post-surgical periods, your transplant team will continue its coordinated approach to meeting your needs.

After your transplant surgery, we will provide you and your donor with the education you need to monitor your condition, recognize signs of problems and safely return to a normal lifestyle. Kidney recipients will also receive comprehensive, personalized education on administering anti-rejection medications, recognizing signs of rejection and other topics.