About Living-Donor Organ Transplantation

Since organ transplant surgery began, the number of seriously ill patients waiting for an organ has steadily gone up. The United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) registry has more than 106,000 people waiting for an organ.

Unfortunately, the need for organs exceeds the number of organs available.

Most people think of organ donation as something you can do when you die. But surgeons have found a way to use organs donated by people who are alive.

• During a living-donor liver transplant, a surgeon removes part of a healthy adult’s liver. They transplant that part into a patient who has end-stage liver disease. Both livers can grow to full size again in just a few months. This leaves both the living donor and the recipient with whole, healthy livers.
• During a living-donor kidney transplant, a surgeon removes one of two kidneys from a healthy adult. They transplant one kidney into a patient with end-stage kidney disease. Both the donor and patient can live a perfectly healthy life with just one working kidney.

Explore our transplant resources. These include patient education materials, support groups and more.