Get the Facts About Kidney Donation

Every year, thousands of living donors donate a healthy kidney to a person who has kidney disease, saving them from years of waiting for a kidney from a deceased donor, going through dialysis and complications associated with kidney failure.

Although living kidney donation is becoming more common—a record 6,860 living donors donated a kidney in 2019—some people may hesitate to become a living donor because they have heard incorrect information about the kidney donation process.

Here are some of the questions people ask about living kidney donation, and the facts as explained by Marian Charlton, RN, CCTC, who is the chief clinical transplant coordinator at Hackensack Meridian Health.