Non-directed living donation, or altruistic donation, is the act of donating an organ to someone you don’t know. The recipient of the donation is selected based on their medical compatibility; including blood type, and size. In addition to helping one specific transplant patient with earlier access to a lifesaving procedure, you are also aiding all other transplant patients by taking that patient out of the pool of individuals waiting for organ offers.
While non-directed living donors do not benefit in the same way as donating to someone you love and care about; it can be a profoundly positive event. Many donors leave this experience with a sense of fulfillment for doing the ultimate good deed of saving someone’s life. Donors and recipients have the choice to meet each other or not after an appropriate period of time for recovery.
Donation is not a decision to be taken lightly. For that reason, we give non-directed or altruistic donors early access to our independent donor advocate; a licensed social worker, to help determine if this is the right choice. They will be able to chat with you about your life and current situation to identify any possible barriers or concerns that would need to be addressed before someone starts the donation process. We also give our donors the opportunity to speak with someone who has been through this process before. Speaking to someone who has already donated gives a unique and first hand resource to donor candidates.
Dan
Liver Donor: 05/21/2019
May 21, 2019 - the day my life changed for the better. I have been an extremely active person my entire life. I participate in triathlons, Ironmans, ultra swims, and many other types of races every year. My training kept me physically and emotionally fit. Being able to donate a portion of my liver to help another was something I will be proud of for the rest of my life.
I had my surgery on a Tuesday and was up walking around Wednesday morning with very little pain. Three days later I was discharged from the hospital feeling great. I took the following week slow in terms of physical activities only because I knew I had to, not because of how I was feeling. I continued to eat clean, rest and was even able to return to running (lightly) in the second week without any issues. One month post-surgery, I felt great and was about 85% back to normal physical activities. 100+ days from surgery, I competed and completed the Ironman 70.3 Lake Placid.
I speak of my physical accomplishment to simply explain how donating a portion of your liver is something which you can do AND return to your normal life in a short period of time. You can save a life in the same window of time you would take a holiday.
It is a year from my surgery and if I didn't tell you than you would never know. My scars are virtually gone; you can barely see any of my incision marks-both the laparoscopic punctures or the scalpel incision. Take a moment and truly think about how you can take several weeks and make a life-saving opportunity for someone in need.
I cannot emphasize how important this is for there are many who are on the list for a transplant. I have never regretted my decision to take time out of my life to donate and be able to change the life of another. Think of how you spent the last two weeks and now think how you could have taken the same time to save a life.
Julie Daquelente
Liver Donor: 12/11/2018
I knew that I wanted to be a living donor since I was in high school, but always assumed I would be a kidney donor, not knowing that living liver donation was even a possibility. In the summer of 2018 at the age of 36, I decided it was time to start doing some research and figure out how the process worked. It was then that I learned about living liver donation and decided to figure out what was involved. I joined organ transplant groups on social media and ended up meeting the Mom of the man I would eventually donate to. Throughout the process, I felt lucky that I got to have this experience and felt that it was a privilege to be able to help someone in this way. Walking across the street to the hospital with my recipient and his family on the morning of December 11, 2018 to donate 65% of my liver will forever be one of her most cherished memories.
