However, there is another option for receiving a kidney organ: Living kidney donation, where a healthy person can donate one of their two kidneys to a relative. However, this involves a number of momentous decisions and consequences that all those involved must clarify beforehand. This was also the case for 44-year-old Philipp and his wife. He suffers from an incurable kidney disease, IgA nephropathy, and has to undergo dialysis three times a week. As there is no prospect of a cure and his condition tends to worsen on dialysis, Philipp needs a new kidney. Due to a lack of donor organs, he hopes for a living donation. After his parents and sister are ruled out as living donors, his wife is determined to donate a kidney to him.

The transplant center at LMU Klinikum Großhadern has a comprehensive kidney transplant program. Organs from deceased donors, but also from living donors, are transplanted there. Dr. Dionysios Koliogiannis and private lecturer Dr. Stephan Kemmner are the doctors responsible for this. The special thing about kidney transplantation after living donation is that there is a special obligation towards the potential donor. The donor's health must not be impaired by the removal of a kidney. Around half of all potential living kidney donors must therefore be rejected for medical reasons.