generic kidney?

[keefer51]

I got a call from the transplant team to come for my yearly check up. Not much has changed, I'm still going to dialysis three times a week for four hours a pop. I am still feeling OK  and as far as the doctor was concerned i was doing good. There are two doctors on the team. The one i saw before was actually pretty funny and by all appearances somewhat honest. Two and a half years ago when i first saw him he said; "Well because of your blood type "O" you will likely be waiting five years or more for a transplant." The rest of the time we sat and told a few off color jokes. I was looking forward to seeing this guy again. Instead i saw his partner. I wish i could tell you his name, but i couldn't begin to even write it. He was very hard to understand but i did the best i could without being rude. After a rather quick check up he sat me down and asked why i didn't sign up for what i like to call a generic kidney. I told him i didn't know what that was. From what i was told it is a kidney that isn't in very good condition. His example was this: "Lets say someone dies of a coke overdose. We take the kidney and give it to you." It may not last as long as a harvested one but it will give you a little time without dialysis." I wasn't sure how to respond so i just said no. Then he left the room and told me to wait. A woman came in and told me she was part of the transplant team etc... She proceeded to ask me the same thing. So again i just said NO! I was allowed to leave. On my way out i heard her say; "If you change your mind call." All i could think of was, "They must be having a sale on generic kidneys.

[okarol]

Hi Keith,

Were they talking about expanded criteria kidneys? (discussed here http://ihatedialysis.com/forum/index.php?topic=2608.0 and here http://ihatedialysis.com/forum/index.php?topic=3708.0)

Or were they talking about non-beating heart donors? (article here http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/542180) "NEW YORK (Reuters Health) Aug 01, 2006 - Transplant recipients who receive a kidney from a victim of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest have graft survival rates comparable to or better than their peers who receive a kidney from a living donor, new research suggests."

I haven't heard the term "generic" in relation to kidneys.

[keefer51]

I am sorry Karol i don't remember what it was called. I called it a generic kidney so that maybe someone would know. It may be close to your second description. I was just taken back a little about the coke addict. He claimed that sometimes they can fix it. I remember him also saying that they will take a kidney that has a creatine of 1.8 or a little higher for a transplant.?

[okarol]

I believe the drug overdose would be non-beating.
Kidneys with higher creatinine would be expanded criteria.

It's too bad they couldn't explain it better. One or the other might be a possible option for you.

You have to sign and agree to accept those options. It doesn't affect your waiting spot on the list (meaning you stay on the regular list until a kidney comes through.)

I think many transplant centers offer them to patients 50 years of age and older. Frequently it's offered when a patient isn't doing well on dialysis, but can also be an option for patients who don't want to wait 5 years or more.

[okarol]

Here's a little more info on non-beating donors http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-heart_beating_donation

[keefer51]

Thanks again Karol for the info.