Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center Kidney Transplant: Wait Times & Patient Data

Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center is the only transplant center for Veterans in Texas. Since opening in 2014, the center has had more than 200 patients on its waiting list within its first two years. Now, nearly 300 veterans are waiting for a transplant. Most have been waiting for three years or more because the center performs about 30 deceased donor transplants each year. The center also has a living donor program, but it is small, with fewer than 10 living donor transplants each year.

There is another option for Veterans. They can get most of their pre- and post-transplant care at their Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, while the transplant surgery would take place in Washington, DC. The Washington, DC VA and MedStar Georgetown Transplant Center now have an approved partnership for kidney, liver, and pancreas transplants.