kep_solver: A Python package for kidney exchange
programme exploration

Kidney disease is one of the top ten leading causes of death globally (WHO Global Health Estimates, 2019), and unfortunately has no known cure. Instead, late-stage kidney disease is treated with either dialysis or a donated kidney transplant. Of these, a kidney transplant is cheaper, and offers both a better quality of life and a longer life expectancy (Axelrod et al., 2018). Such donor kidneys can come from either living or deceased donors, with living donor transplants resulting in better outcomes for the recipient (Hart et al., 2017; Wolfe et al., 2010). However finding a living donor who is both willing to donate and medically compatible can be difficult.