How we help
For people whose kidneys are failing, a transplant may be worth exploring. The surgery happens at a dedicated transplant center — but most of the care surrounding it is ongoing kidney care, and that’s where we come in. A transplant isn’t a single event so much as a journey, and Georgia Nephrology supports patients across the whole of it:
Explore whether transplant is right
As part of planning for advanced kidney disease — including, when possible, before dialysis is ever needed (a preemptive transplant).
Coordinate the referral & evaluation
We help coordinate the referral and evaluation with a transplant center, and time it so options stay open.
Provide kidney care before transplant
Keeping you as healthy as possible while you wait — managing blood pressure, anemia, and the rest of your kidney care.
Care for you after transplant
Working alongside your transplant team to monitor and protect your new kidney over the long term.
Wondering if transplant could be an option?
Request an AppointmentWhy consider a kidney transplant?
When the kidneys reach failure, there are a few paths: dialysis, a transplant, or, for some people, conservative care. A transplant is the option that comes closest to replacing what healthy kidneys do — a single donated kidney can take over the filtering work that a machine does only part of.
For many people who are candidates, a successful transplant means more energy, fewer dietary and fluid limits, freedom from dialysis sessions, and often a longer life than dialysis alone would offer. It isn’t right or possible for everyone, and it isn’t a cure — but for the people it suits, it can be life-changing.
A transplant is the closest thing to natural kidney function — but it asks for lifelong medication and care in return. That trade is one worth understanding early.
Who is a candidate for a transplant?
Candidacy is decided by the transplant center during a formal evaluation, but the question is worth raising long before that. A transplant team weighs your overall health — your heart in particular — along with any active infection or cancer, and your ability to manage the medications and follow-up that come afterward.
Two things are worth knowing. First, many people who assume they’re “too old” or “too sick” turn out to be candidates — age alone rarely rules it out, and evaluation looks at the whole picture. Second, candidacy isn’t all-or-nothing: sometimes a treatable issue (better blood pressure control, weight, a managed heart condition) can move someone from “not yet” to “yes.” The only way to know is to ask and be evaluated.
A transplant before dialysis — when it’s possible
One of the most important and least-known facts in kidney care is this: a transplant doesn’t have to wait until you’re on dialysis. A preemptive transplant — a new kidney before dialysis is ever started — is sometimes possible, and people who receive one tend to have fewer complications and an easier recovery.
Making a preemptive transplant possible comes down to timing. Evaluation takes months, a living donor needs to be found and tested, and waiting time on the deceased-donor list can usually start to build once kidney function reaches an eGFR of 20 or below. The earlier we start the conversation, the more room there is for this best-case path — which is exactly why we raise transplant well before the day dialysis might be needed.
Could a transplant before dialysis be possible for you?
Request an AppointmentLiving donor vs. deceased donor
A transplanted kidney comes from one of two sources, and the difference matters.
Living donor
A kidney from a living person — a relative, friend, or even an altruistic stranger. These kidneys generally last longer, start working sooner, and can often be scheduled within months. When a willing donor isn’t a direct match, paired-exchange programs can still make it work.
Deceased donor
A kidney from someone who has died and chosen to donate, matched and allocated through the national waitlist. This is the path for the many people who don’t have a living donor available — and waiting time can begin to build before dialysis.
Both can work very well. On average, living-donor kidneys last longer and avoid years of waiting, which is why transplant teams encourage exploring whether anyone in your life might be willing to be evaluated as a donor. Not everyone has that option, and there is no obligation either way — the waitlist exists precisely so a transplant is possible without one.
The evaluation and waitlist, generally
Every transplant center runs its own process, but in broad strokes it looks like this:
Referral
Often considered as kidney function falls toward an eGFR of about 20. We help coordinate it with a transplant center and time it so a preemptive transplant stays possible.
Evaluation
A series of tests and visits at the center — heart, blood, tissue typing, and more — to confirm a transplant is safe for you. This can take several months.
Listing & waiting
If approved, you join the national waitlist, where waiting time can begin to accrue at an eGFR of 20 or below. Meanwhile, a living-donor evaluation can run in parallel.
Transplant
When a suitable kidney is available — from a living donor on a planned date, or a deceased donor when the call comes — the surgery is performed at the center.
Wait times for a deceased-donor kidney vary by region and blood type, but many people wait roughly three to five years — sometimes longer. Throughout, we keep providing your kidney care: managing blood pressure, anemia, and the other parts of advanced kidney disease so you stay as healthy and as ready as possible. (To understand kidney failure and weigh every option, see our kidney failure guide.)
Life after transplant
A transplant is the start of a new chapter of care, not the end of it. A new kidney is healthiest when it’s actively protected — and that protection is largely kidney care, which is where we keep playing a role alongside your transplant team.
- Immunosuppression for life. Anti-rejection medication keeps your body from rejecting the new kidney, and it’s taken for as long as the kidney works. Taking it consistently is one of the biggest factors in how long a transplant lasts.
- Regular monitoring. Lab checks watch kidney function and catch problems early — a rise in creatinine is often the first sign of rejection, frequently before you feel anything.
- Whole-body care. After a transplant, attention turns to blood pressure, heart health, bone and mineral balance, and screening for infection and certain cancers, since immunosuppression raises some risks.
- Managing what caused it. The conditions behind your kidney disease — often diabetes or high blood pressure — still need managing to protect the new kidney.
The transplant center typically leads care in the first months, when rejection risk is highest. After that, long-term monitoring often returns to a nephrologist — which means the team that cared for you before transplant can keep caring for you after, close to home.
A connected path, not a handoff
Because we care for patients through every stage of kidney disease, transplant support fits naturally into a relationship you already have. You’re not starting over with strangers — you have a kidney team that knows your history helping guide you through a complex process, and the same team helping protect your new kidney for years afterward.
A preemptive transplant — before dialysis is ever needed — is sometimes possible, and planning early makes it more so.
If you’d like to understand all the paths for kidney failure side by side, our kidney failure guide walks through transplant, dialysis, and conservative care, and our team can help you weigh what fits your health and your life. You can also meet our providers to see who’d be guiding you.
