Urgent kidney appeal for boy, 12, in council care

A gravely ill 12-year-old boy in care is in urgent need of a kidney transplant as his future is at "real risk" unless an organ is found.

It is the first time Leeds City Council has issued an appeal for a child in its care but the authority said due to complications in recent weeks the boy was now on his final treatment option.

Janine Craven, children and families service delivery manager at the council, said the youngster had spent most of his childhood in and out of hospital.

She said: "We have been told by his medical team that if his current treatment fails, there are no other options left for him."

She added: "Every day he is asking staff if a kidney donor has been found yet. It's a really heart-breaking situation and we just hope a donor can be found for him soon."

The boy – who cannot be named because of his age and circumstances - has been in care since 2022 but was diagnosed with chronic kidney failure when he was 10 months old.

He has been on the transplant waiting list since 2019 but, so far, no donor has been found.

A statement from the council said it was urging people in Leeds, and beyond, to come forward and see if they can give him a renewed lease of life.

Four years ago the boy's kidneys failed and he was placed on dialysis that could be administered at home overnight, which meant he could go about his days as normally as possible.

But due to complications in the past few weeks, he was moved on to a different form of dialysis that involves in-hospital treatment, hooked up to a machine for four hours, three times a week.

Ms Craven added: "This is having a really negative impact on his life and emotional well-being and restricts his ability to attend school or see his friends.

"He has done amazingly well with his treatment so far and the hospital staff have been really positive about how he has managed the change despite the restrictions it places on his day-to-day life.

"He spends his time in hospital doing school work, building Lego and watching YouTube – but he is understandably frustrated with the current situation.

"We're told this is the last form of dialysis he can have and it also comes with its own risks, which increase the longer he is receiving it. A kidney transplant is now his best option."

Councillor Helen Hayden, executive member for children and families, encouraged people to check if they are eligible and if they could help.

She said: "Dialysis is keeping him alive at the moment but is a dire way to live and without it, he would die. A kidney transplant would truly transform, and prolong, his life."

Potential donors need to be aged between 18 and 55, a UK resident, not have diabetes, not be receiving any treatment for cancer and have a body mass index under 30.

The assessment process usually takes at least three months. The operation is carried out using keyhole surgery and takes approximately two to three hours, with patients in Leeds generally going home the day after surgery.

Potential donors should email: [email protected]

Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North or tell us a story you think we should be covering here.