Living Kidney Donor Program
About living donation...
Living kidney donation is an important and life-saving gift that individuals can give to patients in need.
Benefits of receiving a living kidney donor transplant include:
- Improved quality of life
- Limits time on dialysis or avoids it altogether
- Longer lifespan
Who can be a donor?
- Must be older than 18 years of age
- Freely willing to donate
- In good health without diabetes, cancer, kidney, or heart disease
What if I'm not a match? Click here to find out how you can help.
The living kidney donor process:
- Please complete the questionnaire and the consent forms. Both forms are required to begin the living donor evaluation process.
- The living donor evaluation begins with a health questionnaire. This will take approximately 10-15 minutes to complete.
- The consent forms may be found at the end of the living donor questionnaire.
- Our coordinators will review the questionnaire and then call you to discuss next steps.
- This is also an opportunity for you to ask any questions you might have about living kidney donation.
- Click here to begin the questionnaire. The questionnaire includes the consent forms.
- If you would like to mail in the questionnaire and consent forms, please send them to the following address:
Living Donor Program
St. Joseph's Healthcare, 50 Charlton Ave. E. L8N 4A6
Level 0 Marian Wing
Hamilton, Ontario
L8N 4A6
- If you would like to mail in the questionnaire and consent forms, please send them to the following address:
- If you need assistance filling out the questionnaire or consent forms, we are happy to help you complete it in person or over the telephone. Please call 905-522-1155 ext. 32156
- Having trouble accessing the online questionnaire? This questionnaire will not open in Chrome or Safari as these web browsers do not support fillable PDF forms. Alternatively, you can click here to download the printable version that you may e-mail to livingdonors@stjoes.ca .
- Submit the questionnaire and the consent forms by selecting "Submit" at the bottom of each document.
- After submitting the questionnaire, if you have not heard from us within two weeks please leave a voicemail and we will ensure to return your call:
- Phone: 905-522-1155, ext. 32156 OR
- Email: livingdonors@stjoes.ca
Unsure about living kidney donation? Click here to read 10 top myths facts about the procedure.
Click here to download a poster with facts about kidney disease.
Evaluation process
- There is an extensive workup process to ensure the donor is medically well so that both the donor and the recipient are as safe as possible
- The workup includes blood tests, urine tests, imaging tests, and meeting with health professionals
- The workup may find abnormalities even if people feel well which may require additional testing
Surgery/Recovery
- Surgery is usually done laparoscopically (by cameras) but may need to be done open (with a larger incision)
- Patients are usually in the hospital for two to five days after donation. There is some discomfort but it is temporary and treatable with medications
- Full recovery usually takes about eight weeks but can vary from person to person
Life after kidney donation
- Kidney donors usually return to their normal previous life after a few weeks with no lasting symptoms
- There is an increased risk of needing dialysis during a donor’s lifetime but it is small (less than 1%)
- There are no new medications or diet changes that are required
Donor Stories
Brian's Story
Pictured above: Dr. Matthew Miller, Medical Lead and Brian Cooke, living kidney donor
For Christmas, Brian Cooke gave a gift only he was able to provide to his niece – his kidney. Brian’s niece, aged 40, required a kidney transplant as a result of Type 1 diabetes which she lived with since she was a child.
After completing his testing and appointments at the St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton Living Donor Clinic, Brian was a match for his niece and he was ready to undergo the hopeful procedure to give his niece a chance at a healthier life.
December 21, 2016 was the day of the successful kidney donation and only four days later on Christmas Day, Brian’s niece was discharged from the hospital.
Today, Brian is able to take part in the same activities he enjoyed before the transplant such as playing hockey and being a caregiver to his wife. His niece significantly improved physically and emotionally, and is now on the list for a pancreas transplant for her diabetes.
When asked about any advice he would have for individuals considering living donation Brian states, “Giving an organ to a loved one is a very special thing, and you must be willing to commit to everything involved. Everyone at the St. Joe’s Transplant Clinic has been a wonderful support system and they help you every step of the way. I do not regret it for a second.”
If you are interested in speaking with a previous living donor as a part of our Transplant Ambassador Program (TAP), you may contact Michelle MacKinnon, TAP Lead, by emailing michelle.mackinnon@transplantambassadors.ca. For more information on the TAP program in general, click here.
For more information, click here to view our living donation program booklet.
Not a match for your recipient?
Click here for other options.
If you are considering donating your kidney to an anonymous donor through the Living Donor Paired Exchange Program, we invite you to browse the brochures below from Canadian Blood Services for more information.
Click on each brochure photo below to view a printable version.
Donors who live outside Ontario or Canada are eligible to donate to Ontario citizens. Processes are in place to help ensure workup, travel, and donation can occur. Please contact our program for assistance with donors living outside Ontario.
The Transplant Ambassador Program (TAP) is a grass-roots, patient-led research initiative aimed at helping to reduce the barriers to living kidney transplants.
It is supported by CanSOLVE-CKD Network, in partnership with the Ontario Renal Network and the Trillium Gift of Life Network.
The goal of TAP is to connect potential kidney donors and potential kidney recipients with TAP Ambassadors:
- To facilitate meaningful interactions between ambassadors and current patients living with CKD and receiving dialysis treatment.
- Inspire patients living with CKD to consider and pursue transplant as an option at the earliest possible stage.
- Inspire family and friends of patients living with CKD to pursue becoming a living kidney donor.
TAP Ambassadors have lived experience as either kidney donors or kidney recipients.
The TAP Ambassador:
- Shares their story of personal lived experience with transplantation or living donation
- Provides assistance in navigating their local transplant evaluation process
- Provides kidney patients and families with other transplant education materials
TAP Role:
TAP Ambassadors, in an easily recognized green vest, volunteer for shifts in MCKC clinics, dialysis and home modality clinics, to connect with potential donors and/or recipients at all stages of the kidney journey prior to transplant.
TAP Mission:
To share experiences and to offer support to all patients with kidney disease/failure and their families.
TAP Vision:
All patients living with CKD and their family members are knowledgeable about, and have equal access to, kidney transplantation and living kidney donation.
Click here to view the members of our Transplant Ambassador Team.
Click here for more information on the Program for Reimbursing Expenses of Living Organ Donors (PRELOD) and eligibility criteria.
Medical Lead for Living Kidney Donor Program: Dr. Matthew Miller
Surgical Director, Renal Transplantation: Dr. Anil Kapoor
Donor Nephrologist: Dr. Seychelle Yohanna
Donor Nephrologist: Dr. Peter Margetts
Transplant Surgeon: Dr. Shahid Lambe
Transplant Surgeon: Dr. Kevin Piercey
Program Psychologist: Dr. Joseph Pelizzarri
Transplant Coordinator: Maria Roberts, Registered Nurse
Transplant Coordinator: Melodie Jansen, Registered Nurse
Administrative Assistant: Kim Guastadisegni
Phone: 905.522.1155 ext. 32156
Email: livingdonors@stjoes.ca
- Ontario Renal Network
- Canadian Transplant Association
- Trillium Gift of Life Network
- Kidney Foundation of Canada
- National Kidney Foundation
- Canadian Blood Services - Kidney Paired Donation (KPD) Program
- Trillium Gift of Life Network Program for Reimbursing Expenses of Living Donors
- PKD Foundation of Canada