CureSureMedico
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Kidney Transplant

Transplant

payments

Starting from

$12,500

Up to $45,000 depending on centre

schedule

Typical duration

21–45 days

Including pre-operative work-up

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Partner hospitals

73

Vetted for outcome data & accreditation

Dr. Rodina Ainasoa

Content reviewed for medical accuracy by: Dr. Rodina Ainasoa · Medical Content Writer & Health Communications

Overview

Surgical placement of a healthy donor kidney to replace permanently failed kidneys, restoring renal function and eliminating long-term dialysis dependency for patients with end-stage renal disease.

Your case is matched to a centre on the basis of clinical outcome data, not marketing. We coordinate every step — from pre-operative work-up to post-treatment follow-up — with a dedicated care coordinator.

What's included

Pre-transplant renal evaluation & HLA cross-matching
Surgical team & organ coordination fees
Post-operative ICU monitoring
Immunosuppressant initiation & protocol
Interpreter & care coordinator
Long-term renal follow-up plan at home

Kidney Transplant

Coordinated from

$12,500

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No commitment required. Your data is never shared with third parties.

Living-Donor vs. Deceased-Donor Kidney Transplant

A kidney transplant can use a kidney from a living donor or from a deceased donor. Which option is appropriate, if either, is determined by a transplant nephrology and surgical team based on donor availability, blood/tissue compatibility, and the recipient's clinical status — never a self-assessment.

ParameterLiving-Donor (LDKT)Deceased-Donor (DDKT)
Donor evaluation & waiting timeRequires a willing, medically and psychologically screened living donor (often a relative); once matched and cleared, transplantation can typically be scheduled electively within weeks, per the National Kidney Foundation.Depends on a compatible organ becoming available through the deceased-donor allocation system; average waiting time for a deceased-donor kidney is roughly three to seven years, per the National Kidney Foundation.
Donor surgery & recoveryThe donor's kidney is typically removed using minimally invasive laparoscopic surgery, which takes about three to four hours and requires one to two nights in hospital, per the National Kidney Foundation.No donor surgery is required as part of the recipient's care coordination; the retrieved kidney is preserved and transported to the transplant centre ahead of the recipient's surgery.
Graft longevityA kidney from a living donor functions for an average of 15 to 20 years, per the National Kidney Foundation.A kidney from a deceased donor functions for an average of 7 to 10 years, per the National Kidney Foundation.
Survival outcomesOne-year graft and patient survival are comparable between living- and deceased-donor transplants, but living-donor recipients show an approximately 6% lower five-year risk of graft failure and superior ten-year graft and patient survival in national registry data, per peer-reviewed cohort studies.One-year graft and patient survival are comparable to living-donor transplants, though deceased-donor recipients face a higher risk of delayed graft function, which is itself linked to an increased risk of acute rejection, per peer-reviewed studies.
Candidacy & suitabilityRequires an eligible, willing donor and a centre with living-donor surgical expertise; the choice between living and deceased donor is made by the transplant team based on donor availability and clinical urgency, per Mayo Clinic.Does not require an available living donor, but is subject to allocation-list wait times and donor-organ availability; suitability is assessed by the same multidisciplinary transplant team.

The Procedure: Step by Step

The description below outlines the general kidney transplant process for the recipient. Your transplant nephrology and surgical team will confirm the specific steps and timeline for your case.

1

Pre-transplant evaluation & listing or donor work-up

A transplant nephrologist and surgical team evaluate kidney function, overall health, and dialysis status, and either list the patient for a deceased-donor organ or begin compatibility testing and evaluation of a prospective living donor, per Cleveland Clinic.

2

Abdominal incision & placement of the donor kidney

Under general anaesthesia, the surgeon makes an incision in the lower abdomen and places the donor kidney in the pelvis (iliac fossa); the patient's own diseased kidneys are typically left in place unless there is a specific medical reason to remove them, per Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic.

3

Connecting blood vessels & the ureter

The donor kidney's artery and vein are connected to the recipient's blood vessels to restore blood flow, and the donor kidney's ureter is connected to the bladder to allow urine to drain, per Mayo Clinic.

4

Closure & post-operative monitoring

The incision is closed and the patient is monitored closely as the new kidney begins to function; the surgery itself typically takes about two to four hours, per Cleveland Clinic.

Recovery Timeline

Recovery Timeline
2–4 hours

The transplant surgery itself typically takes about two to four hours, per Cleveland Clinic.

8–12 days

Most patients remain in hospital for about eight to 12 days after transplant, though this can range from a few days to about a month depending on recovery pace and how quickly the new kidney begins functioning, per Cleveland Clinic.

First 6 weeks

Patients track their fluid intake and output, temperature, blood pressure, and weight daily for at least six weeks after surgery, with frequent follow-up visits for blood testing and immunosuppressant-dose adjustment, per Cleveland Clinic.

~6 weeks

Average total recovery time to resume most daily activities is about six weeks, though this varies by individual health and how the transplant progresses, per Cleveland Clinic.

Source: Cleveland Clinic. Individual recovery and results vary and are guided by your transplant nephrology and surgical team.

⚠

Known Risks & Limitations

  • Acute rejection occurs in up to an estimated 7% of adult kidney transplant recipients within the first year, per the most recent Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) national data.
  • Delayed graft function — the new kidney taking time to start working — affects an estimated 20% to 50% of deceased-donor kidney recipients across published studies, and is itself associated with a higher risk of acute rejection in the following year, per peer-reviewed research.
  • For living donors, the surgical complication rate is approximately 2%, with perioperative donor mortality estimated at about 0.03%, per Mayo Clinic.
  • As with any major vascular surgery, risks include bleeding, infection, blood clots, and other surgical complications; lifelong immunosuppressant medication also increases the recipient's risk of infection, certain cancers, and other conditions such as hypertension, per Mayo Clinic.
  • Long-term graft function differs meaningfully by donor type — kidneys from living donors function for an average of 15 to 20 years, compared with 7 to 10 years for deceased-donor kidneys — though individual outcomes vary, per the National Kidney Foundation.

Source: Mayo Clinic; National Kidney Foundation; peer-reviewed studies of kidney transplant rejection and delayed graft function; Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) national data. No procedure is without risk; your transplant team will review your individual case.

The CureSureMedico Care Pathway

Remote clinical review

Share your diagnosis, renal function history, dialysis status, and lab results, and let us know whether a potential living donor is available. Our coordination team forwards your case to a transplant nephrology and surgical team for an initial candidacy assessment.

Donor matching & centre coordination

Where a living donor is available, blood/HLA compatibility and donor-health evaluation is arranged; where a deceased-donor pathway applies, the receiving centre coordinates listing and allocation procedures. Where relevant, this includes the regulatory review that foreign-national living-donor cases require in the treating country.

Clinic matching & estimate

A consolidated cost estimate covering pre-transplant work-up, donor evaluation (if applicable), surgery, and initial post-operative monitoring is issued before you travel.

Transplant surgery & early recovery

Travel, final pre-operative work-up, the transplant surgery itself, and the initial hospital stay and early recovery period are coordinated with your care team throughout.

Continuity of care post-return

A discharge summary, immunosuppression regimen, and follow-up schedule are shared with your home nephrologist before you travel home, with remote coordination available for ongoing monitoring and any questions that arise.

Treatment approaches

Standard and robotic-assisted Kidney Transplant

Standard Approach

Laparoscopic Donor Nephrectomy

$12,500

21–45 days

Robotic-Assisted Option

Robotic-Assisted Donor Nephrectomy

$14,500

20–42 days

Comparing the two approaches

StandardRobotic-Assisted
ProcedureLaparoscopic Donor NephrectomyRobotic-Assisted Donor Nephrectomy
TechnologyConventional surgical instrumentsRobotic-assisted surgical system with surgeon oversight
AvailabilityHospital-dependentSelected hospitals with robotic capability
SpecialistProcedure specialistSpecialist with relevant robotic experience
Clinical suitabilityCase-dependentCase-dependent
Tariff$12,500–$45,000$14,500–$48,500
Duration21–45 days20–42 days

Eligibility for robotic-assisted treatment

  • This comparison applies only to removing the kidney from the healthy living donor — the recipient's transplant surgery itself remains open surgery either way and is not affected by this choice
  • Donor anatomy (kidney size, vessel and ureter position) confirmed on cross-sectional imaging as suitable for a minimally invasive, multi-port robotic approach
  • Full donor medical, psychological, and independent donor-advocacy evaluation confirming fitness and informed, voluntary consent to donate — unchanged by which surgical technique is used
  • Availability of the specific robotic platform and a transplant surgeon experienced in robotic donor nephrectomy at your selected hospital — offered at fewer centers than standard laparoscopic donor surgery

Risks and limitations of robotic-assisted surgery

  • Robotic assistance does not eliminate the surgical risks of donor nephrectomy, including bleeding, injury to nearby organs, and the small residual risk of long-term reduced kidney function for the donor
  • The transplant surgeon remains responsible for the procedure; robotic guidance is an aid, not a substitute for surgical judgement, and conversion to a standard laparoscopic or open approach may be needed if bleeding or unexpected anatomy is encountered
  • Published comparisons report less postoperative pain with the robotic approach, but mixed results on blood loss and operative/warm-ischemia time versus standard laparoscopic donor nephrectomy, with broadly similar donor safety and complication rates overall — it has not been shown to change outcomes for the recipient's own transplant surgery
  • Availability depends on the individual hospital and the treating surgeon's specific robotic donor-nephrectomy case volume

Tariff structure

Standard procedure$12,500–$45,000
Robotic-assisted technology fee+$2,000–$3,500
Total estimated robotic-assisted tariff$14,500–$48,500

Why can robotic-assisted procedures cost more?

Robotic-assisted procedures rely on additional technology and equipment beyond the standard operating platform and clinical team. This additional technology component is generally not included in standard case pricing.

Is robotic-assisted surgery always recommended?

No. Robotic-assisted surgery is not appropriate for every procedure or patient. Availability and suitability are determined by the treating specialist, based on your imaging, clinical condition, and the treating hospital's capabilities.

Global cost comparison — Kidney Transplant

Average coordinated costs across our partner centres. Final pricing depends on clinical complexity and chosen hospital.

CountryAvg. costvs. cheapest
🇮🇳

India

New Delhi · Chennai · Bengaluru · Hyderabad · Mumbai · Kochi

Best value✓ Verified
$14,250
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🇹🇷

Turkey

Istanbul

Estimate
$20,000
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🇹🇭

Thailand

Bangkok · Phuket · Chiang Mai

Estimate
$22,000
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Costs are indicative estimates and vary by procedure specifics, hospital, and clinical complexity. Request a personalised estimate for your specific case.

Cost & recovery by procedure

This treatment category covers several different operations with different levels of invasiveness, recovery times, and costs. The country averages above blend all of them together — use the breakdown below for a more realistic, procedure-specific estimate.

Living Donor Kidney Transplant

A healthy kidney donated by a living relative, spouse, friend, or altruistic donor is surgically implanted into the recipient, usually via open transplant surgery while the donor kidney is retrieved laparoscopically or robotically. It is the preferred option where a compatible donor is available, since it can be scheduled electively — avoiding a waiting list — and living-donor kidneys generally function longer than deceased-donor kidneys.

Typical recovery · 3–4 weeks

The recipient's hospital stay is typically 5–10 days, with the donor usually discharged within 2–4 days after minimally invasive kidney removal. Recipients gradually resume normal activity over 3–4 weeks, though heavy lifting is avoided for about 6 weeks; close monitoring for organ rejection, infection, and surgical complications continues throughout, alongside lifelong immunosuppressant therapy.

India

$13,000–$18,000

Turkey

$18,000–$30,000

Thailand

$20,000–$32,000

Deceased Donor Kidney Transplant

A kidney from a deceased organ donor is transplanted into the recipient. Most countries — including India, Turkey, and Thailand — restrict deceased-donor organs to their own citizens/residents under national allocation law and international ethical guidelines (the Declaration of Istanbul), so this pathway is generally not available to international patients travelling specifically for transplant; foreign patients are typically expected to bring a compatible living donor instead.

Typical recovery · 3–5 weeks

Where accessible (for example, for long-term residents within a country's own allocation system), hospital stay and recovery broadly resemble living-donor transplant, though deceased-donor kidneys carry a somewhat higher risk of delayed graft function requiring temporary dialysis immediately after surgery. Ask your care coordinator directly about your specific eligibility before assuming this pathway applies to you.

India

Estimate pending verification — ask your care coordinator for a current quote

Turkey

Estimate pending verification — ask your care coordinator for a current quote

Thailand

Estimate pending verification — ask your care coordinator for a current quote

Pre-emptive Kidney Transplant

A living-donor transplant performed before the recipient's kidney function has declined to the point of needing dialysis. Clinical evidence associates pre-emptive transplantation with better long-term graft and patient survival than transplanting after a period on dialysis, so it is generally recommended whenever a compatible living donor and adequate work-up timing allow it.

Typical recovery · 3–4 weeks

Surgical technique and hospital stay mirror standard living-donor transplant (recipient typically 5–10 days, donor 2–4 days); because the recipient has not yet been weakened by prolonged dialysis, early recovery and return to normal activity are often somewhat smoother, though the same 3–4 week activity restrictions and lifelong immunosuppression and rejection monitoring apply.

India

$13,000–$18,000

Turkey

$18,000–$30,000

Thailand

Estimate pending verification — ask your care coordinator for a current quote

Cost ranges are indicative estimates for international patients and vary with implant choice, number of levels treated, surgeon, and hospital. Request a personalised quote for your specific case.

Clinical detail: AAOS OrthoInfo, Mayo Clinic Health System, Cleveland Clinic. Cost ranges cross-checked across multiple independent medical-tourism sources per country where marked; ranges flagged "pending verification" could not be independently confirmed at the time of writing.

Partner hospitals

73 centres
View all hospitals
Hospital Medica Sur

Hospital Medica Sur

Mexico City, Mexico

Hospital Médica Sur is a world-class tertiary referral centre in Tlalpan, Mexico City, recognised as Mexico's best hospital for six consecutive years by Newsweek's World's Best Hospitals ranking (2026). The hospital is the first and only institution in Latin America to join the Mayo Clinic Care Network — with a dedicated Mayo Clinic office on-site since 2018 — and is one of only four JCI-accredited hospitals in Mexico. Its 35+ specialty centres span the full spectrum of high-complexity medicine: robotic surgery (Da Vinci X), Gamma Knife radiosurgery, organ transplantation (150+ procedures since 2002), bariatric surgery, oncology, neurosurgery, nephrology, and orthopaedics.

✓JCI✓Mayo Clinic Care Network

200+

Specialists

220+

Beds

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Memorial Hospitals Group

Memorial Hospitals Group

Istanbul, Turkey

Memorial Hospitals Group is Turkey's most internationally recognised private hospital network, founded in 1995 and opened to patients in February 2000. Its flagship Sisli campus in Istanbul was the first hospital in Turkey — and 21st in the world — to receive JCI accreditation in 2002, with uninterrupted renewals ever since. Across 11 hospitals and 2 medical centres, Memorial hosts 1,300+ physicians and treats 75,000 international patients per year from 167 countries. The group is celebrated for cardiac surgery (1,400+ operations/year), organ transplantation (including Turkey's first blood-type-incompatible kidney transplant), IVF (10,000+ babies born), oncology with TrueBeam and CyberKnife, and robotic neurosurgery.

✓JCI✓ISO 15189:2022

1,300+

Specialists

252+

Beds

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Amrita Hospital

Amrita Hospital

Faridabad, India

Asia's largest private hospital — 2,600 beds, 64 operation theatres, 81 specialties on a 130-acre campus in Delhi NCR. NABH & NABL accredited. Centres of excellence in oncology, cardiac surgery, BMT, organ transplantation, neurosciences, and IVF.

✓NABH✓NABL

800+

Specialists

2,600+

Beds

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Medicana International

Medicana International

Istanbul, Turkey

Medicana International Beylikdüzü, founded in 2007, is a 30,000 m² multi-specialty hospital in Istanbul's Beylikdüzü district with 60+ clinical departments. The facility combines advanced oncology (MR-Linac, PET-CT, Linear Accelerator), cardiac care with dedicated coronary and cardiovascular surgery ICUs, a Bone Marrow Transplant Centre, organ transplantation (liver & kidney), an IVF/Assisted Reproduction Centre, and a full neurosurgery suite — all supported by Da Vinci robotic surgery and a multilingual International Patient Centre.

✓Health Tourism Authorizati…

200+

Specialists

200+

Beds

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Frequently asked questions

Living-donor kidneys function on average 15–20 years; deceased-donor kidneys 10–15 years. Adherence to immunosuppressant therapy and regular follow-ups significantly extend graft survival.

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