J. Harrison Ghee Is Waiting for a Kidney. Here's What Searching for a Kidney Donation Looks Like.

Most people are born with two kidneys, but many people can live a healthy life with just one functioning kidney. A living kidney donation happens when a healthy person donates a kidney to someone with little to no kidney function. 

Living donors can be related to the person receiving the kidney, but they do not have to be. A donor could be a friend, coworker, neighbor, acquaintance—or even someone they do not know.

If you aren’t a match to your preferred donor or want to donate to a stranger, there are still ways to help. 

Most transplant centers participate in kidney paired donation, also called paired exchange. In a paired exchange, an incompatible donor and recipient can be matched with another donor-recipient pair so that each recipient can receive a compatible kidney.

People can also become non-directed donors, meaning they choose to donate to someone they do not know. In some cases, this can start a chain of kidney donations that helps multiple people receive transplants.

Learn more about living donation.

90 thousand people are on the kidney waitlist. 12 die every day. For people on that list, the wait can be long and uncertain. A living donor can sometimes help shorten that wait.

Ghee is helping spread the word. 

"For a long time, I thought I could manage my diagnosis on my own, but healing isn't a solo act," Ghee said in a statement reported by Playbill. "I'm currently on the transplant waiting list, and I'm grateful for my care team and everyone who's shown up for me. My body has taught me how to listen to it, and I'm carrying that with me as I step into this next chapter of my career."

For someone waiting for a kidney transplant, having a living donor may offer important benefits. Living donor transplants can often happen sooner than a transplant from a deceased donor. Living donor kidneys may also begin working sooner and may last longer.

Watch videos made from real living donors in the Kidney Learning Center.

Maybe you've heard someone talk about donating a kidney and wondered, “Could I do that?”

The only way to know for sure is to go through a living kidney donor evaluation.

The evaluation is about much more than finding out whether your blood type or other medical factors match a recipient. The transplant team wants to make sure donation is safe for you, both now and in the future.

The evaluation includes:

• Blood and urine tests
• Imaging tests
• A review of your medical history
• Meetings with a transplant nephrologist and surgeon
• A psychosocial evaluation
• A meeting with an independent living donor advocate
• Discussions about recovery, finances, work, and caregiving

The process may sound like a lot—and it is. That's intentional. Donating a kidney is a major decision, and you deserve to have all the information you need before making it.

Living kidney donation is generally considered safe for carefully selected donors, but it is still major surgery.

Potential long-term health risks can include a slightly higher chance of developing high blood pressure or diabetes. But the risk of kidney failure after donation is very low. 

The transplant team will explain the risks and perform extensive testing to make sure donation is as safe as possible.

Learn more about making the decision to donate.

The first step is to contact a transplant center.

You’ll complete a health history and begin testing to determine whether you're eligible to donate. If you move forward, you’ll meet with members of the living donor team to discuss the emotional and logistical aspects of donating as well as additional medical testing.

The evaluation can take several months, and sometimes longer, depending on your health, scheduling, and the transplant center.

If you are approved, the transplant team will work with you and the recipient to plan the surgery.

If you're ruled out as a donor at one center, you can get a second opinion at another center. And if you are not approved, that does not mean you have failed. The transplant team's responsibility is to protect your health.

Keep in mind, if you're trying to donate to someone specific, you will want to be evaluated at the transplant center where they have been approved or a center that partners with an external organization that also works with their center.

Learn what to expect after a kidney donation. 

One of the most important things to understand about living donation is that you are in control of the decision.

You can decide not to donate at any point–even after being approved and before surgery.

There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to deciding whether to donate.

Talk to a trained living donor peer mentor to hear their experience and ask questions about donation.

By speaking publicly about their diagnosis and the need for a kidney, Ghee is helping more people learn more about kidney disease, kidney failure, and living donation. 

"The first step is getting informed," Playbill reported Ghee said. "I hope sharing my experience encourages people who've never thought about organ donation to start that conversation, and encourages those who've already decided to make sure their loved ones know." 

Ready to take the next step? Get started here.