A grandfather's sacrifice has created a new model of organ donation at several hospitals across the United States.
This program started at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center when a 64-year-old man made an unorthodox proposal to hospital leaders. He would donate one of his kidneys to a person on the waiting list now in exchange for a kidney for his grandson sometime in the future.
The man's grandson was born with only one kidney, which didn't function normally. The boy was too young for a transplant when his grandfather was young and healthy enough to serve as a living donor. However, knowing the boy could need a kidney transplant in the future prompted his grandfather's solution.
Thanks to his grandfather's donation to a stranger, the boy will move to the top of the waiting list when and if he ever needs a kidney transplant.
"This is groundbreaking," Dr. Jeffrey Veale, a surgeon at the California hospital, said in a press release. "The demand for a kidney transplant is tremendous, but with this program, I would argue that, for the first time in history, we can actually start reducing the number of people who are on the waiting list."
According to the National Kidney Foundation, around 100,000 of the 121,678 people on the organ waiting list are in need of kidneys. The median wait time for a kidney is 3.6 years, and 3,000 new kidney patients are added to the waiting list each month.
A teenage girl in New York who is living with a functioning kidney transplant will also be able to take advantage of the voucher program. Her father donated a kidney so she'll have quick access to a second transplant if needed in the future. Donated kidneys usually last 10-20 years before another organ is needed.
Veale said the program could spur "altruistic" or "nondirected" donors to action. Often, altruistic donors want to donate a kidney, but fear a loved one might need one in the future. Using the voucher program, altruistic donors could donate a kidney to a stranger now, knowing that a spouse or child would be guaranteed a future transplant.
"We have seen an increase in the number of altruistic donors over the past few years," Veale said. "Often these people are blood donors or bone marrow registrants and are considering donating a kidney to a stranger. If one half of 1 percent of the adults in this country decided to become living donors, we could wipe out the kidney donation waiting list 15 times over."
When asked for comment, the American Society of Transplant Surgeons issued this statement:
"The ASTS is strongly in support of novel efforts to remove disincentives to live organ donation to increase the organ supply. In that the NKR Advanced Donation Program strives to remove such disincentives, the society sees this program as in line with our goals and values. The success of the NKR program will be dependent upon the resolution of a number of logistical, operational and other challenges. The question of whether advanced donation represents valuable consideration is a legal issue, and therefore, outside the purview of the ASTS."
Other hospitals who have signed on to participate in the voucher program include:
- Emory Transplant Center, Atlanta
- New York Presbyterian, New York
- University of Maryland Medical Center, Baltimore, Md.
- UCSF Medical Center, San Francisco
- University of Wisconsin, Madison Medical Center, Madison, Wis.
- Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio
- University of Chicago Medicine, Chicago
- Allegheny General Hospital, Pittsburgh, Pa.
- Sharp Memorial Hospital, San Diego
- Virginia Transplant Center, Richmond, Va.
