PRA question

[angela515]

I'm trying to get a better understanding how this all works. I don't know what my PRA level is, I assume my PRA score is 0 (Zero) based off the fact that when I called my transplant coordinator yesterday and asked her what my antibody levels were, she said 0. Now, I know a PRA score of 0 is good, as it means it should be easy to find a match for you, is this correct? If so, shouldn't my wait time be shorter than someone with high PRA scores? (In theory anyways..) Tomorrow is my 2 yr anniversary on the waiting list... and I have never got a call once, not even as a "possibility" or "back-up", it's a depressing thought, and I know many many other's have been waiting much longer, but I also know, some people don't even have a 1yr wait time... So I'm just trying to understand my PRA level and what it means.

[BigSky]

Not sure how all that works.

PRA score tells what the level of anti-human antibodies one has.  The number in percentage tells what amount of the population your anti-human antibodies would bind with.  0 is a good score however 60% of the UNOS population is in the 0-19 group. Low does mean you have a shorter time for a transplant in general compared to those who have a higher level of PRA levels.  Also it depends on you tissue matching and blood type to a donor. 

This might be wrong but I was told when it comes to transplant lists the kidney goes to the person who has been on the list the longest and who has the best tissue antigen match.  Meaning if one person is 5-6 but only on 1 year they will get the kidney before a person who has been on the list 3 years who would only be a 3-6 match.

Again I am not sure if that is true but it was what I was told years ago on my first transplant.