Study Results: Centralized Normothermic Preservation and Assessment Center Used to Rescue Kidneys

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind., May 4, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- 34 Lives, PBC, which since April 2024 has rescued 600 donated kidneys that may otherwise have gone unused, announces the results of a study in the American Journal of Transplantation, entitled "The use of a centralized normothermic preservation and assessment center to rescue kidneys declined after standard allocation."

https://www.amjtransplant.org/article/S1600-6135(26)00125-5/fulltext

The goal of the multicenter observational study was to determine if kidneys considered marginal or non-ideal and declined based on standard clinical criteria, could be successfully transplanted after being assessed and perfused using Normothermic Machine Perfusion (NMP) through a specialized perfusion center via 34 Lives, in order to reduce kidney discard rates.

The Problem. Even though more Americans than ever are waiting for a kidney transplant, the nonuse of kidneys recovered for transplant in the US has risen to almost 30%, and in 2024, more than 9,000 recovered kidneys went unused.

• The escalating nonuse rate is driven in part by the rapid increase in non-ideal kidney donors, including older donors and donors after circulatory death (DCD)
• Geographic barriers and logistical constraints (travel time) during the allocation process can lead to extended cold ischemic times beyond the standard acceptable 24-hour time limit. This can result in non-ideal but transplantable kidneys becoming even harder to place.

Study Results. This study demonstrated that declined kidneys can be safely transported to a perfusion center, assessed, and subsequently transported to a transplant center for successful kidney transplantation.

• High Rescue Rate. The rescue rate was the study's outcome of interest. During the study period, 104 donor kidneys underwent assessment with NMP, of which 94 were accepted and transplanted, resulting in a 90% rescue rate. 
• Lower Delayed Graft Function (DGF). Despite having significantly longer cold ischemia times (median 37.6 vs. 22.1 hours), the NMP group had a lower rate of delayed graft function (DGF)—26.3% compared to 60.2% in the control group.
• Comparable Survival. Short-term graft survival and function (eGFR) at 6 months were similar between the NMP and non-NMP cohorts.
• Assessment: Viability was measured using the Hosgood score, which evaluates renal flow, urine output, and macroscopic perfusion quality.

According to Chris Jaynes, 34 Lives CEO and study Principal Investigator, "These results suggest that NMP may have a promising role in assuring no donated kidney is left behind. A major finding in this study is the feasibility of using a dedicated NMP center to safely extend the current cold ischemia times of high-risk donor kidneys so that surgeons have more time to find better matched recipients."

In conclusion, the use of a centralized perfusion center can facilitate NMP and serve as a rescue pathway for declining kidneys. Kidneys that declined based on standard clinical criteria can be assessed with NMP and safely transplanted with lower than expected rates of DGF. Additional follow-up is needed to characterize the long-term function of kidneys transplanted following NMP. This study supports broader utilization of NMP for kidney transplantation in the US.

To Learn More

• 34 Lives is a Public Benefit Corporation (PBC) headquartered in the Purdue Research Park in West Lafayette, Indiana. The firm is committed to saving the lives of patients awaiting kidney transplant by providing innovative solutions that can give hard-to-place kidneys a second chance and enough time to make it to a waiting patient.
• The firm's research protocol, A Central Preservation and Assessment Service to Optimize Donor Kidney Allocation, OPTIMAL, can be found at ClinicalTrials.gov. [Identifier NCT06263023]
• 34 Lives was founded in 2022 with a mission to decrease the number of kidneys in the US that are recovered with the intent to transplant but subsequently not used. Since April of 2024, the 34 Lives team has rescued 600 kidneys for transplant.
• To learn more about the work of 34 Lives, visit the website at https://34lives.com/

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SOURCE 34 Lives, PBC