Once you’ve been evaluated for a transplant by a transplant center and determined to be a good candidate, it’s time to find a donor. Your transplant center will tell you about both living and deceased donor options, and they will put you on a waiting list for a deceased donor. Whether you prefer a living donor instead or simply want to increase your odds of finding a kidney donor, the National Kidney Foundation (NKF)* and United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS)** share tips on how to find a living donor and ask someone you know to consider kidney donation.  

How to overcome fear and find a living donor 

It can be scary to ask someone to be a donor—both for you and for them. You will both likely have concerns about time, health, and finances, among other aspects. The transplant center team will take care of assessing and going over all of these aspects, and they can also help provide financial assistance.

In order to find a living donor, you can take the following steps:

1. Start talking to family and friends about kidney failure and your need for a kidney transplant. This can be done in-person in a setting that is comfortable for you, over the phone, via email, or in a letter. This allows people to ask for more information if they are curious or considering donation.
2. Share your story with your coworkers, social groups, community organizations, local news sources, and/or social media to widen your potential network for a new kidney. Options here include asking your employer to include it in company communications or on the website and putting up flyers or posters at school, work, church, your local café, and/or anywhere else it is permitted.
3. Once you’ve educated those around you on kidney disease and treatment, allow them to talk to other people in their circle about your need for a kidney donation.
4. Go to websites that specialize in living kidney donation, such as the NKF program, “The Big Ask, The Big Give,” and the Living Kidney Donors Network. 

To help you educate those around you about kidney transplantation and donation, you can call (toll-free (855) 653-2273) or email the NKF’s helpline, NKF Care, “to request free educational brochures about donation to share with your friends or family members.”  

How to inspire someone to donate

Asking someone to consider donating an organ can be a tough conversation, and it takes courage to do so. When you’re ready to start having that conversation with people, here are five tips on how to inspire someone to donate their kidney.

1. Provide them with unbiased information. Tell them about kidney disease, kidney failure, and treatment options, including a kidney transplant. Explain your personal circumstances without pressuring the person you’re speaking to. Try to stay relaxed and give them space to contemplate and ask questions.
2. Make it bigger than yourself. Share pertinent articles and blogs on the nation’s kidney shortage on your social media accounts, where your family and friends can choose to educate themselves further.
3. Keep it positive. While there are many emotions that accompany end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) and kidney transplantation, it’s important to try to focus on the positive aspects, such as how a kidney transplant will change your life.
4. Discuss the perks of having a living kidney donor. Research shows living donor transplants have better outcomes.
5. Refer potential donors to reliable sources. Providing your loved ones with well-known websites, where they can find additional information and read more about kidney disease, donation, and transplantation, will help them make an educated decision on their own.

If you have or find an interested living donor

If a friend, family member, or someone you know expresses interest in donating one of their kidneys, have them reach out to the “transplant coordinator” at your transplant center. The transplant coordinator will give them all of the information they need and begin the evaluation process to see if they are a potential match.

Additional information can be found on the NKF’s pages on “5 Ways To Inspire Living Kidney Donation” and “The Top 3 Reasons People Are Afraid to Ask for a Kidney—and How to Overcome Them.”

*National Kidney Foundation. (2018, August 28). Looking for a Living Donor. 

**United Network for Organ Sharing. (2020). Finding a living donor.