A Kidney for John How to help

Living Donation 101

Living kidney donation, explained simply.

A healthy person can live with one kidney, and a kidney from a living donor can change everything for someone like John. Here are the basics, in plain language.

This page is general education drawn from the National Kidney Foundation, NIDDK, UNOS/OPTN and the National Kidney Registry. It isn't medical advice. Only a transplant team can tell you whether donating is right for you.

Who can donate

Requirements vary by transplant center, and the transplant team makes the final decision. In general, a living kidney donor:

  • is at least 18 (some centers set the minimum as high as 25),
  • is in good health with normal kidney function,
  • has no major physical or mental illness.

There is no official maximum age, though it is harder for older donors to qualify. People with a BMI over 35 are usually not accepted. You don't have to be related to the person you want to help.

Source: National Kidney Registry: FAQ for Donors · NKF: Becoming a Living Donor

What testing involves

The process starts when you contact a transplant center. Its living donor team checks whether donating is safe for you. Expect:

  • Blood and urine tests, including your blood type and a cross-match that predicts whether the recipient's body would reject your kidney.
  • Imaging, such as a chest X-ray, a CT scan and a kidney scan, so the team can see your kidneys and how blood flows to them.
  • Meetings with the team about your health history, your support at home and your well-being, including an advocate whose job is to look out for you.

The evaluation often takes several visits over weeks to months. You can be evaluated at more than one transplant center.

Source: NKF: Living Kidney Donor Evaluation · NIDDK: Kidney Transplant

Surgery and recovery

Most donor surgeries are laparoscopic: a few small incisions and a camera, which usually means less pain and a faster recovery than open surgery.

  • Hospital stay: typically 1 to 3 days.
  • No flying for at least a week.
  • Back to work in about 2 to 6 weeks, longer for physically demanding jobs.

Like any surgery, donation has risks, and there are some long-term risks too. Most donors go on to live normal, healthy lives. Your transplant team will walk you through your own risks before you decide.

Source: National Kidney Registry: FAQ for Donors · NKF: Long-Term Risks of Living Donation

Who pays

The donor's medical costs are typically covered by the recipient's health insurance. That includes the evaluation, surgery, hospital stay and follow-up care related to donating.

What's often not covered: lost wages, travel, lodging and childcare. Help exists. The National Living Donor Assistance Center and the National Kidney Registry's Donor Shield can help with some of these costs, depending on eligibility and where you donate.

Federal law (the Affordable Care Act) means a health insurer can't refuse you coverage because you donated. The Family and Medical Leave Act may protect your job during recovery, though leave under it is unpaid.

Source: NKF: Living Donor Finances and Insurance · National Kidney Registry: FAQ for Donors

Paired and chain donation, simply

Paired donation is a swap. Say you want to give to a friend, but your kidney isn't a match for them. Another donor wants to give to someone they love, and they aren't a match either. If your kidney matches their person and their kidney matches yours, you trade. Two people get transplants.

A chain goes further. One donor gives to a stranger, and that person's willing donor gives to the next person in line, and so on. One "yes" can lead to several transplants. The longest chain on record included 35 transplants.

This is why John is enrolled in paired kidney donation: a willing donor doesn't have to be his match to help start the chain that reaches him.

Source: UNOS/OPTN: Kidney Paired Donation · National Kidney Registry: FAQ for Donors

Myths vs. facts

MythYou have to be family, or a perfect match, to help.

FactYou don't have to be related. Through paired donation, a donor who doesn't match their intended recipient can still help them by swapping with another pair.

MythThe donor pays for the surgery.

FactThe donor's medical costs related to donation are typically covered by the recipient's insurance. Some non-medical costs aren't, and assistance programs exist for those.

MythOnce you start testing, you're committed.

FactYou can change your mind at any point, even after you're approved and right up to surgery. Your reasons are kept private.

MythDonating means you'll lose your health insurance.

FactUnder the Affordable Care Act, insurers can't refuse to cover you or charge you more because you donated a kidney.

Source: UNOS/OPTN: Kidney Paired Donation · NKF: Living Donor Finances and Insurance · NKF: Making the Decision to Donate

How to start

If you're thinking about being tested for John, here are the first steps. Asking questions commits you to nothing.

  • Contact Rachel. She can get you the information to fill out an application.
  • Or start the online donor form at Ascension St. John in Tulsa.
  • Or call the Transplant Center at 918-744-2925 and say you're inquiring for John Watkins.
Contact Rachel Start the donor form 918-744-2925

Sources

Last reviewed October 27, 2026. Programs and requirements change; check with the transplant center for the latest.