The Kidney Project

Friends and Family Donor List Information

Become a donor

Kidney disease affects many people in the African American community, and the need for kidney donors is especially high. Becoming a donor can save a life and give someone a chance for better health and more time with their loved ones.

VISION
No African American suffering from Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD)

MISSION
To education the African American community about the causes, treatment and resources for CKD
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Historical Impact

  • An estimated 37 million Americans have chronic kidney disease
  • African Americans account for 35% of all kidney failure cases
  • Americans of African ancestry are 4-5 times more likely to develop kidney failure than Americans of European descent
  • African Americans have higher rates of diabetes and high blood pressure, the primary causes of chronic kidney failure, than the White population.
  • Standard treatments for kidney failure are dialysis and kidney transplant
  • While 28.5 percent of the total candidates currently waiting for transplants are African Americans, they comprised 12.9 percent of organ donors in 2020
  • Of that 28.5 percent of African Americans waiting for a transplant in 2020, only 27.7 percent received a kidney, as opposed to 47.6 percent of Whites waiting for a transplant
  • Additionally, in 2020, 16.4 percent of African Americans were living donors compared to 33.4 percent of White living donors

Kidney Health Matters

How You Can Help: What We Know

  • We know kidney transplants save lives and improve the quality of life
  • We know that you only need one kidney to live a healthy life
  • We know the transplant waitlist can be long (avg wait time 2-8 years)
  • We know the number of donors in the African American community is disproportionate to the need
  • We Know part of the unwillingness to donate is fear (doctors, medical system finances) and lack of kidney education
  • We know that African Americans need additional help finding a donor
  • We know the process for donating a kidney is simple and straightforward and does not cost you

Call to Action

  • Our goal is to create an easy access list of 500 friends and family members that are willing to be potential donors!
  • Adding your name to the list only states you are willing to be considered as donor, it does not guarantee you will be selected.
  • You can help by clicking the button below and completing the registration form. If you are selected, you will be asked to meet with your recipient’s doctor to see if you are a match.
  • If you are a match, you will be asked to decide whether to move forward with the donation or not.
Register

Additional Resources

  • African American Transplant Access Program (AATAP)
    • Northwestern Medicine Transplantation
  • American Society of Nephrology
  • Black Doctor.org
  • Boston Medical Center
  • Christ Hospital Health Network, OH
  • Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
  • Cleveland Clinic
  • Harper University Hospital Detroit Medical Center
  • Henry Ford Hospital
  • Living Organ Donor Network
    • offers disability/life/medical insurance
  • Medicare/Medicaid
  • National Kidney Foundation
  • National Minority Organ Tissue Transplant
    • Education Program
  • Ohio State University Medical Center
  • Private finances (fundraising)
  • Private Health Insurance (2022 Affordable Care Act)
    • Illegal for insurance companies to refuse coverage
  • Spectrum Health Helen DeVos Children's Hospital
  • St. John Hospitl and Medical Center
  • University of Chicago
  • University of Michigan
  • University of Michigan Medical Center
  • University of Toledo
  • University of Toledo Medical Center
  • U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
    • Office of Minority Health
  • William Beaumont Hospital