Kidney transplant at 60 plus stories please

[Chawal2]

My kidneys are 33% now. IgA patient. I want to know how long a kidney lasts if received at age of 55 or 60. What is chance of body accepting new kidney at that age? In uk does every recepient of kidney also need to donate a relatives kidney?? I want to hear real stories please. Consultant has no interest to discuss and google givesno results to this query. Thanks and best wishes to all

[DexterLab]

I got a living donor transplant at age 64. My donor was about 60, so my new kidney is the youngest part of me, other than teeth. I am 3 and a half years out from the transplant and doing well, avoiding Covid as best I can.

The evaluation at the transplant center was about my overall health and being cleared for the operation and not about my age. I have PKD and was in good shape other than the kidneys. The plan is have this kidney go a long time, 20 years or more.

I don't know about the UK rules. I was encouraged to find a living donor. The living donor transplants work better, and happen right away. The wait for a deceased donor for my blood type was typically several years. My donor is the pastor of my church! You never know where you will find your donation angel. Good luck.

[Chawal2 in reply to DexterLab]

thank you v much for detailed information. I am so grateful and your explanation is v encouraging. I wish u all the best😇🙏

[Chawal2 in reply to DexterLab]

hi DexterLab, after transplant do u avoid going out in public places or meeting people - to avoid infections do u try to stay indoors? thank you v much once again. best wishes to u all.

[Chawal2 in reply to DexterLab]

and r there any dietry requirements u need to follow after transplant?

[DexterLab in reply to Chawal2]

Grapefruit and pomegranate are off the list because they interact with the immunosuppressant drugs. Docs always want you to eat a healthy low-fat diet.

[Chawal2 in reply to DexterLab]

thank you v much DexterLab. Best wishes to you once again

[Chawal2 in reply to DexterLab]

i read that even if one does not have diabetes but as a side effect of medication after transplant, one can get diabetes? have you faced such a thing? thanks again

[Daijb in reply to DexterLab]

My wife had her transplant last year in the UK at age 75 from a deceased donor aged 79. There was no pressure to have a living donor. She had to have the usual interview with the Transplant team and needed support from her NHS consultant to get onto the list and be Activated. There are lots of kidneys from older people and old recipients tend to be favoured as the they will have less life left. My wife was offered a kidney within a week of being activated. That kidney was found to be unsuitable and was offered another within 3 months. That also unsuitable but 1 week later a third was offered and she now has that. It did come with EBV which was known and has given some problems but you can't be choosy. Her current test results are super.

[Chawal2 in reply to Daijb]

thank you v much for sharing important information. my father is 77 years old now and in next 5-10 years he will be 82-87 years old and so do u have any idea if he can donate to me if his tests r good? i suspect due to advanced age of his, i may be better off NOT* taking his kidney?

[Daijb in reply to Chawal2]

Hi. I can only suggest he would need the usual array of blood tests to check the state of his kidneys. I'm not sure at that age whether the operation for him as living donor would be a good idea but as a deceased donor it might be. The kidneys do get a good check on the transplant day but that can't include overall function if deceased. Obviously the match e.g. blood group etc must fit. My wife was lucky to have received a very good kidney.

[Chawal2 in reply to Daijb]

thanks a lot... these success stories listed here from well wisher generous members like yours are v encouraging to read. best wishes

[LavenderRabbit]

I got a transplant at the age of 58. I also have IGA nephropathy. I’m one and a half years out and doing great! My donor was my husband. I did not get his kidney, we were in the exchange program.

Feel free to send me a message if you have other questions.

[Chawal2 in reply to LavenderRabbit]

thanks you sooo much for sharing your success story. i am grateful and i wish you all the best. is it true that after transplant one should avoid going to public places to avoid catching any virus/infection? so do u avoid meeting people n try to stay indoors? thank you once again...

[Chawal2 in reply to LavenderRabbit]

and r there any dietry requirements u need to follow after transplant?

[Chawal2 in reply to LavenderRabbit]

i read that even if one does not have diabetes but as a side effect of medication after transplant, one can get diabetes? have you faced such a thing? thanks again

[Bax509 in reply to Chawal2]

use of steroids post- transplant can lead to diabetes in some people. Did not happen to me. As far as diet goes, I was told to avoid grapefruit, star fruit, blood oranges, and two others I never ate anyway & can’t think of the names of now. This was due to interaction with the drugs I was prescribed. You may get different advice. Other general diet advice was simply “heart healthy “ - lower sodium, lower fat etc. if you have other conditions that advice may be different.

[LisaSnow in reply to Bax509]

oh no.i was never told about star fruit and I LOVE them!

[Bax509 in reply to LisaSnow]

Maybe you’re not on the same drugs? I’m on prograf, cellcept, pred, bactrim, valtrex, protonix, & 3 other non-transplant drugs if that helps Lisa! 🙂 I’ll try to look the other 2 fruits I was told to avoid…

[LisaSnow in reply to Bax509]

its probably because Star fruit is very rare (and expensive) in the US. In fact most Americans have never seen one.

[Chawal2 in reply to Bax509]

thank you v much for giving all the important information. i wish you both the best of luck and health.

[LavenderRabbit]

Don’t go into public for three months after transplant. That is the period of time that you are most vulnerable because of so much immunosuppressants in you from surgery.

The only dietary restrictions I have are no grapefruit or pomegranate. That’s because of the interaction with the drugs.

It’s true about the diabetes. So, I avoid sugar as much as possible. I still have something on a special occasion. So far so good.

[Chawal2 in reply to LavenderRabbit]

thank you v much for all the information and sharing your experience LavendarRabit...

[horsie63]

I've not gotten a transplant...yet anyway. My first evaluation at the transplant center will be Sept 19th. I'll be 59 in Dec so if I get approved and have to wait for a deceased donor then I'll be 60 or even slightly over. I'm trying to find a donor but no success at this point. I'll keep trying though.

Right now I have some anxiety about the appt, I'm afraid they'll find something wrong with me and say no. It's the fear of the unknown I know but still....

[Chawal2 in reply to horsie63]

best of luck dear friend and i am confident u will soon get a living donor and your transplant will be approved. kindly keep us updated and keep calm and carry on. best wishes once again and thanks for sharing your situation...

[LavenderRabbit in reply to horsie63]

The best thing I can tell you about getting a donor is to get a friend to do the asking for you. It is hard to ask someone for a kidney. I know! But it’s easy to ask for someone else.

[Chawal2 in reply to LavenderRabbit]

great tip dear. thanks... we can also thank them by helping them in other ways...

[Peyton050621 in reply to horsie63]

no worries. I received a kidney from a deceased donor last year at 57 and it’s working beautifully. He was a young man with my blood type which is AB positive and it matched perfect. Many relatives and friends who wanted to donate in the beginning either decided not to or couldn’t. I was getting really discouraged because I felt like no one cared. After much thought, I probably wouldn’t donate my kidney if I was in their shoes either. It’s a major operation with many risks. It can be scary for people. I had to have faith and hope to get through every day. There’s a reason for everything. Be glad for every day. When I would feel sick, I figured my body is telling me to rest. When I felt well, I did things I enjoyed. Even if it was cleaning the house. Hang in there. I hope you have more good days.

When I used to feel down, I would think of the children of St Jude that suffer and many die from cancer. They did absolutely nothing wrong in their entire little life. Bless those little ones. ❤️

[Chawal2 in reply to Peyton050621]

thank you v much for giving all the important information. i wish you both the best of luck and health. and thanks for your kind words for me.

[horsie63]

Best to you also. There seems to be a lot of stories here of older people getting transplants. Not sure what the situation is where you are but hoping for the best.

[Chawal2 in reply to horsie63]

thank you so much. i feel so much better after reading so many success stories. i was highly concerned about advanced age during transplant. best wishes to u once again

[WYOAnne NKF Ambassador]

I am 72 and had my transplant 22+ years ago. My transplant was from a deceased donor that was 16. Before I got the "call", a friend of mine was going to be my living donor.

I do not have to follow any special diet except to stay away from grapefruit. I try to eat heart healthy.

I am not diabetic and have no signs of the disease.

[Chawal2 in reply to WYOAnne]

this is one of the best news i have heard. i am quite optimistic now. best of luck to u and congrats for success so far. thank you for sharing detailed information with me

[Darlenia]

My hubby received a deceased donor kidney at age 71. He agreed to accept a accept a kidney that had a few issues and came from a middle aged man - often the "best" kidneys go to younger individuals. We agreed to that - we recognized that lifespans do shorten as time goes on. My hubby is a diabetic who controlled it to the point he had no longer needed any meds or insulin for it while he was on dialysis. His A1Cs were in the normal range. As soon as he was transplanted, the diabetes resurfaced with a vengeance due to the immunosuppressants. So, he's back on insulin. I don't think this happens often, or at all, to those who have never had the disease.

[Chawal2 in reply to Darlenia]

thanks dear Darlenia for sharing your encouraging information. so how long ago was the transplant? i wish your hubby and u the best of luck and may you both be blessed with perfect health

[Darlenia in reply to Chawal2]

His transplant was last year - June 2021. I forgot to mention his diet. Post transplant, his diet returned to normal other than limiting sugar and carbs due to his diabetes. He had no restrictions on sodium, phosphorus, potassium, etc. as the new kidney kept them in the normal range. However, he was asked repeatedly to significantly increase his water intake to at least 2 liters/daily; he found that difficult as liquids were severely restricted while on dialysis. I sincerely hope you're able to stave off dialysis and manage to get a kidney should your kidneys decline further. Being proactive and streamlining is good!

[Chawal2 in reply to Darlenia]

thank you v much for giving all the important information. i wish you both the best of luck and health. and thanks for your kind words for me.

[frebusmaxwell]

I just got a kidney transplant on August 25 and I'm 72. My donor (sister) is 8 years younger. so far, so good!

[sfdole in reply to frebusmaxwell]

It's so good to see older persons being able to have kidney transplants! I was 74 when I received my transplant from an altruistic donor 7 years ago. She was 34 at the time so I have a young kidney! I will be 82 in October and am doing well but my husband and I are extremely careful during this pandemic. My very best wishes to all of you!

[Chawal2 in reply to sfdole]

thank you v much for giving all the important information. i wish you both the best of luck and health. and thanks for your kind words for me.

[Chawal2 in reply to frebusmaxwell]

thank you v much for giving all the important information. i wish you both the best of luck and health.

[mtwskk]

what they tell you doesn’t always happen in my situation they told me I’d get a year or two off a cadaver. I went ahead as I didn’t want to do the PD any longer and though a year or 2 off dialysis would be great. I got the kidney in 2011 and Creatine at its best was 1.6 or about 30%. We’ll it’s now 2012 been 11 years and the kidney is now shutting down and at like 21% so I’ve gotten 11+ years off they kidney. Moral of the story no one know how long you’ll get if you take care of it and take all your meds watch sodium acid and bp you’ll do great. Go for it the second day is the worst getting out of bed. Other than that not a cake walk but not too bad. Good luck and God Bless you.

[Darlenia in reply to mtwskk]

My hubby also received a deceased donor kidney - ours came with some issues. We're hoping that his new kidney, like yours, will give him a decade or more of a good life. Praying yours will hang in there and give you more time!

[Chawal2 in reply to mtwskk]

true doctors guess is not always accurate. thank you v much for giving all the important information. i wish you both the best of luck and health. and thanks for your kind words for me.