‘Phenomenal response’ to kidney donor appeal for 12-year-old boy in care

The transplant team at Leeds Children’s Hospital say they have been inundated with offers of help – receiving nearly 700 enquiries within a matter of days - as big-hearted people rally to support the poorly young boy following an appeal issued by the council last week.

Jack (not his real name – his age and circumstances mean he must remain anonymous) – who has been in the council’s care since 2022 – has been on the transplant waiting list since 2019, having first been diagnosed with chronic kidney failure when he was just ten months old.

As the appeal stated, due to recent complications he is now on his last treatment option, involving in-hospital dialysis, hooked up to a machine for four hours, three times a week – vastly reducing his quality of life and putting his future at real risk unless a kidney is found.

Issuing a public appeal about a child in care was a highly unusual step for the council but one deemed vital to try to help him in his devastating health battle – and both his carers and clinical team have been amazed and deeply touched by the sheer scale of support.

Within days, the appeal had been shared over 34,000 times from Leeds City Council’s Facebook page alone, reaching over 3m people – with touching messages coming in from as far afield as Australia.

Transplant co-ordinators at Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust (LTHT) have now kindly asked to pause enquiries to help ‘Jack’ as they process the hundreds received so far but urged anyone interested to please join the Donating your kidney - NHS Organ Donation national database and help the many others in a similar situation.

A spokesperson from the LTHT’s Live Donor Team said: “We’re delighted by the response to this particular campaign and would like to thank everyone who has come forward to offer their support to ‘Jack’.

“Due to the scale of the response, at present we are no longer looking for new enquiries for this patient but anyone who is thinking about becoming an organ donor should visit www.organdonation.nhs.uk as there are many other patients waiting for donor organs.”

Councillor Helen Hayden, Leeds City Council’s executive member for children and families, said: “Thank you Leeds for your phenomenal response to our appeal asking for help for this young boy.

“We have been blown away by your support and are profoundly grateful to everyone for sharing the campaign so widely and to the potential donors who have come forward in their hundreds.

“This just shows how the people of Leeds can come together when it counts and how compassionate our city is when it comes to supporting one of our own.

“We truly hope this will lead to some positive news for Jack.

“The appeal has also shone an important spotlight on the need for donors to help all those on transplant waiting lists and we would urge anyone who has been moved by this campaign to please consider adding their names to the organ donation register and help all those still looking for their match.”

To find out more about organ donation and how to join the register, please visit Register your decision - NHS Organ Donation and for more information on kidney donation specifically, visit Donating your kidney - NHS Organ Donation.

ENDS