Considering traveling overseas for a kidney transplant?
Recently, there has been a proliferation in the advertising of overseas kidney transplant clinics.
These services charge a fee for finding you a compatible kidney transplant donor, harvesting the organ, performing the kidney transplant, limited post transplant care, and accommodation.
Whilst for those that have been waiting a long time for their kidney, this may seem a viable option, some factors need to be considered.
- How well are the organs matched? Whilst you may receive a blood type match, as these clinics provide no guarantees as to the long term viability of the organ, they are under no obligation to provide acceptable HLA and anitbody matching.
- How well trained in the surgeon? There are rumours circulating that at one Chinese transplant clinic, a dermatologist is performing kidney transplants.
- From whom has the kidney been harvested. It is accepted practice in China to harvest organs from executed prisoners, and there are stories just coming out of China about the prisoners of the outlawed Falun Gong religious sect having organs harvested whilst they are still alive.
- What sort of post-transplant care is offered? Do these clinics have the facilities to properly monitor your health post-transplant? Do they have the experts in transplant immunology to care for you properly in the event of a rejection episode?
- What is the risk of surgical complications? As many of these transplant clinics are being run in what's known as "second tier" hospitals, in smaller villages, effective infection control procedures are not guaranteed.
Taking in to account the above questions, whilst travelling overseas for a kidney transplant may seem a viable alternative to spending a long time on the transplant waiting list, you could be risking your life.