Becoming a Kidney Donor

Becoming a Kidney Donor

The entire process is EXTREMELY thorough and happened in stages. My testing process began after I told my parents that I wanted to give my mom a kidney. After I told them, my parents told me that the first step is to call the transplant coordinator RN to let her know that I was interested in becoming a living kidney donor for my mom.

November 18^th: When I called the transplant coordinator, she conducted a phone interview with me to gather the preliminary data and mailed a package of information for me to review. The informational packet explained the process of living kidney donation and introduced me to the transplant team. It also explained the positives and risks in donating a kidney. In order to continue the testing process, I had to sign a consent for evaluation form and complete a questionnaire included in the information packet, after which I would be scheduled for the phase 1 tests.

December 2^nd: Phase 1 testing

• Sign a consent for evaluation form
• Questionnaire (initial screening for eligibility)
• Medical history
• Family history
• Psychological/Social background
• Urine Test
• Glucose Tolerance Test (drink a sugary substance and pee into a cup)
• Blood Panel
• Includes: HIV, Hepatitis B & C, kidney function, liver function, possible virus exposures, test for anemia (Source: Living Kidney Donor Evaluation Process | University of Maryland Medical Center )
• Blood type match
• Antigen match
• Height & Weight

After completing the first phase of testing (and still being a potential match for my mom), I had to wait for several weeks for my mom to complete her own additional testing and medical procedures. Once she was ready, I was able to schedule phase 2. This round of tests was not as quick and took a bit of logistical coordination.

March 20^th: Phase 2 testing (7:15am to 1:30pm)

*Preparation: Must drink at least 2 quarts of water the day before and can’t eat 4 hours before CT scan

STRONG SUGGESTION: Get to the testing center early enough to get the urinalysis done FIRST. Otherwise, you are holding more than 2 quarts of water for an hour while you get part one of the Glofil Test done!

• Glofil Test (I-125 Glomerular Filtration Rate Test) Part 1
• Urinalysis (protein to creatinine ratio)
• Blood Panel
• Tissue cross match
• HLA blood typing
• EKG (heart health)
• Meet with transplant coordinator (Living donor education session)
• Meet with independent donor advocate (financial, emotional, physical impacts of donation)
• Meet with social worker (same as independent donor advocate)
• Meet with surgeon
• Physical exam
• Glofil Test Part 2
• Chest X-ray
• Contrast Dye CT Scan

March 27^th: Today, I was accepted by the board for kidney donation! I also found out that my EKG showed that I have sinus bradycardia. I was told it won't stop me from donating and nothing needs to be done for it. I Googled it and it means I have a slow resting heart rate (58 beats per minute).

March 28^th: The date of the surgery was officially set for May 6^th.

April 25^th: I have been running three times per week for the past three months hoping to get in the best shape for the surgery. When I began running, I was jogging at a 10:30 minute per mile pace for about 15 minutes (I was a bit out of shape from the winter) and am now running with a group from work for about 4.25 miles at about a 10:00 minute pace on Tuesday and Thursday followed by an up tempo run on the weekend of 2-3 miles at around a 9:00 minute per mile pace. I set a goal for myself to run a half marathon in November to hopefully force myself to maintain my fitness for the quickest recovery. 

April 28^th: Phase 3 testing

• Pre-surgery instructions
• EKG part 2
• Chest X-ray part 2
• Blood Panel
• Tissue cross match part 2
• Updated body chemistry tests

April 29^th: I feel like I’ve gotten a cold since Friday. I thought it might be allergies but I’m starting to get a bit of a stuffy nose. I went for a 2 mile run yesterday at a 9:00 pace and felt fine afterwards so hopefully it goes away quickly.

I also got some stressful news today in that my second EKG came back “abnormal”. I was told I have inverted T waves on the inferior leads. Being the control freak I am, I Googled it and proceeded to freak myself out. Multiple medical sites basically said it could be normal for me, especially since I’ve been running frequently, or it could be a sign of heart damage. I’m going for another EKG and an ECG tomorrow to find out for sure. My stress levels also couldn’t be helping much…

April 30^th: I went for an echocardiogram and an EKG to clarify the inverted T waves today. When I got there, they didn’t have my scripts for the procedures, even though I know that my transplant team had sent them over. I had to wait for 20 minutes while they had them re-faxed before I could go in to get the echocardiogram. The technician, Wayne, was great and answered all my questions. He professionally handled the questions that he couldn’t or wasn’t allowed to answer. At the end of the procedure, he said I’d have the results available within 24 hours but told me that he wasn’t able to see anything abnormal when he was doing the echo.

May 1^st: I called Nancy, my transplant coordinator, at 7:30am to see if they had my results. I was told that the cardiologist noticed that I had a trivial pericardial effusion and wanted to see me before he felt comfortable clearing me for surgery. I Googled it again and learned that it could be normal or it could be a result of ischemia from a heart attack or an infection. I’ll have to wait to get a phone call from Nancy to know when I need to go in so I can still have the surgery on Tuesday.

I got a phone call from Nancy at 10:00am and got the good news that, after he got ALL the information from my background and previous tests, the cardiologist felt very comfortable clearing me for the surgery. I apparently have an “athletic heart” which means that the running is actually growing my heart muscle. I can now feel good that the bradycardia is due to my heart more efficiently pumping blood around my body and not due to some underlying heart condition. The surgery is now officially on for Tuesday!