Kidney Transplant
Vanderbilt Health is one of the oldest and largest kidney transplant programs in the country, providing patients with excellent outcomes and access to innovative new research and treatments. By pioneering new approaches, we are able to serve more patients, including high-risk patients who may not be candidates for transplantation at other medical centers. Our specialists also perform lifesaving dual-organ transplants for patients with liver- kidney or heart-kidney dysfunction.
Conditions We Treat
- Chronic kidney disease
- Inflammatory disease of the kidneys
- Inherited kidney disease
Meet Your Care Team
William C. CrannellMD
- Dialysis Access, Kidney and Pancreas Transplant, Laparoscopic Kidney Donor Surgery, Pancreas Transplantation, Renal Transplantation, Surgical Problems in Patients with Kidney Disease, Transplant Surgery
Bernard J. DubrayJr, MD
- Dialysis Access, Kidney and Pancreas Transplant, Laparoscopic Kidney Donor Surgery, Pancreas Transplantation, Pediatric Kidney Transplant, Pediatric Surgery, Renal Transplantation
Rachel C. ForbesMD, MBA, FACS
- Dialysis Access, Kidney and Pancreas Transplant, Laparoscopic and Robotic Donor Surgery, Pancreas Transplantation, Pediatric Kidney Transplant, Pediatric Surgery, Renal Transplantation
Laura A. HickmanMD, MS
- Dialysis Access, Kidney and Pancreas Transplant, Laparoscopic and Robotic Donor Surgery, Pancreas Transplantation, Pediatric Surgery, Renal Transplantation, Renal/Kidney Transplantation
David ShafferMD
- Dialysis Access, Kidney and Pancreas Transplant, Pancreas Transplantation, Pediatric Kidney Transplant, Pediatric Surgery, Renal Transplantation, Renal/Kidney Transplantation
April L. DemersAPRN, MSN, BSN
- End Stage Kidney Disease, Kidney and Pancreas Transplant, Renal Transplantation, Surgical Problems in Patients with Pancreas Disease, Transplant, Transplant Surgery
Tina NguyenBSN, MSN, APRN
- Kidney and Pancreas Transplant, Renal Transplantation, Transplant, Transplant Surgery
Princess J. SheltonFNP
- Kidney and Pancreas Transplant, Renal Transplantation, Transplant, Transplant Surgery
Why Choose Kidney Transplant at Vanderbilt
- Knowledge and experience
The Vanderbilt Transplant Center provides more lifesaving transplants than any other program in Tennessee. We perform more than 300 kidney transplants each year. Our specialists have the expertise and advanced training to perform even the most complex transplant procedures with excellent outcomes.
- Team approach
We work together to ensure that you receive the comprehensive care you need. Our team members collaborate with each other, as well as with experts in other medical disciplines, to provide you with individual care that addresses your unique needs.
- Living donor kidney program
A living kidney donation reduces the wait time for a healthy kidney and has proven better outcomes. Living donors must be adults, so we work in partnership with our adult team at the Vanderbilt Transplant Center. A living kidney donation from a family member or friend gives a patients a better chance of a longer, healthier life. Learn about becoming a living kidney donor.
- Faster access to organs
We can successfully treat recipients of kidneys from donors affected by hepatitis C so they can safely receive them. This shortens wait times by making more organs available to our patients.
- Paired donor exchange
We offer paired kidney donations for patients who have a willing living donor with an incompatible blood type or tissue. This allows the incompatible pair to exchange a kidney with another donor/recipient pair on the wait list. Both recipients receive a healthy kidney with a shorter wait time. We also work with other transplant centers around the nation to create chains of kidney donors and recipients and speed up the transplant process for more people.
- Blood type compatibility
Vanderbilt is one of a few transplant centers in the country that regularly transplants kidneys from donors with blood types A2/A2B into patients with blood type B. This type of transplantation can reduce your wait time for a healthy kidney.
- Veterans' care
We are one of only a few transplant programs designated by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to provide organ transplant services to our nation’s veterans.
- Pediatric care
We know our smallest patients require a dedicated team of specialists as knowledgeable as they are comforting in their approach to pediatric care. That’s why we provide pediatric transplant services through the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt.
Vanderbilt Health Kidney Transplant Program
Tests, Treatments and Services
- Cardiac function evaluation
- Imaging tests
- Kidney transplant
- Kidney-heart transplant
- Kidney-liver transplant
- Kidney-pancreas transplant
APOLLO NetworkWe are proud to be part of the APOL1 Long-Term Kidney Transplantation Outcomes (APOLLO) Network, a national study supported by the NIH that is working to address racial disparities in kidney transplant outcomes.