What's Good and Bad About Transplant?
| What's good about transplant | What's bad about transplant |
|---|---|
| If the kidney works well, you won't need dialysis. | If the kidney doesn't work well, you may have a long recovery to get back to where you were. |
| A kidney transplant won't take hours of treatment time out of your week. | You will have to take the drugs correctly, every day. The drugs are costly and have side effects, like a higher risk of some kinds of cancer, cataracts, diabetes, and weight gain. |
| You won't need to limit how much fluid you drink. | You will have to drink lots of fluid to help the kidney stay healthy. You may have a low-salt and/or lower-calorie meal plan or a low-fat and/or lower-cholesterol meal plan to avoid gaining weight from the steroid drugs you'll need. |
| You won't need a PD catheter or a vascular access if you don't already have one. | Steroid drugs can cause moon face, hair growth on the face, weight gain, and anxiety. (The dose of these drugs is reduced slowly over time.) |
| You may feel well and stronger, so you can work full-time or stay active. | Before you feel better, you will have to recover from the surgery. |
| You can take part in most of the things you enjoy, including work.* | You may have to avoid contact sports, like hockey or football, where the kidney could be injured. (It is safe to play basketball.) |
| Getting a kidney from a relative or friend can help you to feel closer. | If the kidney doesn't work, you may feel guilty about the donor "wasting" a kidney. There may be short- and long-term risks to your donor. |
| If you get a deceased donor kidney, you won't have to ask a living donor. | There is no way to predict how long you might have to wait for a deceased donor kidney. |
* Please note: If you do not have another reason for disability, you will lose your SSI or SSDI as soon as a year after transplant. Medicare ends 3 years after a transplant unless you have Medicare due to age or disability other than kidney failure. You need to have a plan for how you'll pay for your care and transplant drugs.
If you lose Medicare and don't have another health plan, you can enroll in a marketplace plan under the ACA if you do it soon enough after losing Medicare. Review plans and try to choose one that lets you keep your doctor(s), hospital, and that pays for the transplant drugs you take. Call 800-318-2596 or visit Healthcare.gov to learn more about options in your area.
