BOBBY O’POSITIVE
Bobby O’Positive
UPDATE: Bobby O’Positive received a new kidney in July. He is doing well with his recovery. Remember, be a DONOR – save a life!
A message from Mommy O’Positive…
Bobby is an 11-year-old boy from Hawley, Pennsylvania. Anyone who has ever met Bobby would know he is one special kid. He has an uncanny ability to make you laugh and is such a sweet boy! Unfortunately, Bobby has been diagnosed with Nephronophthisis (NPHP), a rare genetic kidney disorder that affects 1 in 990,000 in the United States. Bobby is now in Stage 5 Kidney Failure. He is in need a of a kidney transplant from a living donor with O type blood – Negative or Positive. The purpose of this message is to help him find that living donor to save his life. Bobby’s parents are not candidates due to previous medical conditions, much to Mommy O’Positive’s disappointment.
The potential living donor can be between the ages of 18 and 62, the preferable donor will be on the younger side to enable Bobby to hold the kidney for a longer period of years. BMI must be under 32. The donor must be a non-smoker with no previous history of medical conditions including but not limited to cancer, diabetes, hypertension, kidneys stones, etc. The process consists of filling out an application and then two blood tests – one to see if the potential donor matches antigens in Bobby’s blood. If the donor matches those 6 antigen, the next blood testing is where they crossmatch Bobby’s blood and the potential donor’s blood – essentially mixing their blood together to see if his blood rejects the potential donor’s blood – this would indicate that his body may or may not reject the organ.
So now after a year of searching, here are some of the particulars as to why finding a match is so challenging: Only 40% of the population is O type blood. Once you eliminate the people that are too old, too young, and too sick to be candidates, it is essentially like looking for a needle in a haystack to be Bobby’s perfect match.
If you are interested in being tested please message our Facebook page @AKidneyForBobbyO’Positive.
This page is used to share Bobby’s journey, raise awareness for living donation and fundraisers for Bobby and his family.
Our further purpose is to spread the word of other children and families desperately hoping, waiting and praying to find their potential donors. If you are willing to give to Bobby but are not his blood type, PLEASE consider saving someone else’s child. There are thousands of children waiting, attached to machines, that just want to be kids. The need is SO great for living kidney donors.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and consider saving a child’s life, my child’s life. Hug and hold tight to your healthy children every day. Kiss them even if they push you away because they are too cool. Tell them you love them a zillion times a day. You never know what a given day will bring. I pray no other parent EVER has to watch their vibrant, energetic, full of spirit child deteriorate because of any such disease. Every day is a gift to us to open with new hope and I cherish every single second I get to see Bobby O’Positive smile that great big smile. ♥ Mommy O’Positive
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