At UPMC, we believe in the lifesaving power of living donation. For patients needing a liver or kidney transplant, a living-donor transplant is a primary treatment option that can eliminate or shorten the wait for a deceased donor organ.
A living donor is someone who donates a kidney or part of their liver while they are still alive to someone who needs an organ transplant.
There is a low risk of long-term complications for living organ donors. Living kidney donors may experience increased blood pressure over time and have a slightly higher-than-average risk of developing diabetes or kidney failure. Rarely, living-liver donors may experience liver failure.
There are three types of living donation, including:
We perform living-donor organ transplants to treat end-stage kidney disease and end-stage liver disease.
Living donors can be family members, friends, or even strangers who are willing to help. A patient on the national transplant waiting list and their potential living donor don’t even need to have the same blood type.
To be a living donor, you need to be physically and mentally healthy, with no history of illnesses involving any major organs, as this could complicate surgery.
To be a living liver donor, you must be between 18 and 60 years of age. To be a living kidney donor, you need to be between 18 and 75 years of age. And, most importantly, you must have an unselfish desire to help someone in need.
Living-donor transplant procedures include:
During a living-donor liver transplant, a surgeon removes a portion of a healthy adult’s liver and transplants it into a patient with end-stage liver disease. This procedure is possible because the liver has the unique ability to regenerate, or regrow, in just a few months, leaving both the living donor and the recipient with fully functioning livers.
Our philosophy is that living donation should be discussed with every patient, as it can reduce time on the waiting list from years to just months while also improving outcomes.
Our team has performed more than 1,000 living-donor liver transplants, including procedures for people with complex conditions, such as:
During a living-donor kidney transplant, a surgeon removes one kidney from a healthy adult and transplants it into a patient with end-stage kidney disease. This procedure is possible because, although you have two kidneys, you can live a perfectly healthy life with only one working kidney.
The UPMC team brings decades of experience in living donor transplants and offers donor exchange options, which provide patients with shorter waits for organs to become available.
UPMC surgeons have access to advanced technologies and robotic systems to assist with transplant surgery. As a result, we use exclusively minimally invasive, and — when possible — robotic techniques to perform living donor kidney surgeries. Using a robotic system instead of traditional surgical techniques or open surgery allows surgeons to perform minimally invasive living-donor surgical procedures with increased precision, less tissue damage, and better visualization — providing easier access to areas that are hard to reach.
In 2024, UPMC kidney transplant surgeons performed a robotic nephrectomy on a living donor using the multiport robotic surgery system, da Vinci Xi® by Intuitive. The UPMC Kidney Transplant Program at UPMC Harrisburg was the first program in central Pennsylvania to use this robotic system. In some instances, our adult kidney programs perform a robotic nephrectomy on living donors.
Living-donor transplants help save the lives of people with end-stage liver or kidney disease by reducing or eliminating the time they spend on the national transplant waiting list. Recipients of living-donor organs often experience better outcomes and recover more quickly.
Living donors are given the rare chance to save someone else’s life and see their friend, loved one, or even a stranger return to health and happiness.
During the process, living donors can expect:
Before scheduling living-donor surgery, you will undergo a thorough pre-donation evaluation.
This will ensure that:
You will also meet with the living-donor transplant team and have an opportunity to ask questions, ensuring you and your care partner understand all of the risks and benefits of living donation.
The recipient’s insurance and UPMC will cover the cost of the evaluation and donor operation. The donor will not be responsible for any part of the transplant evaluation or surgery. During the evaluation visit, a financial coordinator will meet with the donor to answer questions about the process.
During your living-donation procedure, your surgeon will remove your kidney or part of your liver and transplant it into the recipient’s body. The procedure typically takes three to five hours.
After your living-donation procedure, you will need to spend a few days in the hospital and attend follow-up appointments to ensure you are healing as expected. Most living donors can return to work or their typical activities within eight weeks, depending on their job.
UPMC offers supportive services for living donors to promote a healthy lifestyle and physical, mental, and emotional well-being after organ donation.
When you choose UPMC for living donation care, you will receive:
By UPMC Editorial Staff. Last reviewed on 2025-12-09.
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