New Kidney Transplant Allocation System

[Guest guest]

Many may have heard me talk in the past about what I consider to be extreme conservatism in US transplants of organs. Specifically, the failure to use organs from older donors and over strenuous match requirements that, while they improve success rates, lower the number of transplants performed.

Well, for kidneys, there has been a change. The goal is to use the kidneys from "less traditional" donors to increase the number of patients receiving transplants. There are currently 53,000 persons waiting for kidney transplants. A "less traditional" donor is a donor 60 or over or a donor between 50 and 59 with a couple of conditions that would have previously disqualified. Fewer matching factors will be required in this program.

The way it is designed to work is that these will go to patients who have agreed to accept "extended criteria donor kidneys." This program is designed to serve those not doing well on dialysis and who otherwise might have major complications including death.

So, its a program where you undertake the additional risk only by choice. On the other hand its designed to use the organs now being discarded.

I have posted this because Kidneys are generally at the forefront of transplants and many of the rules and changes there ultimately end up being applied to other transplants after a period of observation.

Any who have had a transplant or are considering one might be interested in the site, www.transplantliving.org. It is a very informative site with everything from matching policies to finances to support groups.