'I can't let this end any other way than life': Fayetteville 8-year-old boy running out of time for kidney match
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (WPVI) -- Time is running out for 8-year-old Jordan as he and his grandmother, Deborah Jones, continue to search for a perfect kidney match.
"I can't let this end any other way than life," Jones said.
Jordan's grandmother conducts dialysis for the 8-year-old four times a week, working around the clock to keep him alive.
"He has microvascular, he has the microsmall intestines, he's tube-fed; needless to say, he has no kidneys. He hasn't peed since 2016," Jones said.
The search has gone on for over three years -- after Jordan Rhodes' first kidney transplant failed in 2016.
That failed attempt has left his antibodies at a 99.9 percent chance of rejection, meaning it's essentially impossible to find a match.
On top of that, Jordan has ran out of dialysis ports; his body is covered in scars from the last eight years.
Jones said the port on the right side of his chest is the last spot doctors can place a catheter. Once that spot is done, the young boy will be out of options.
But Jones has no intention of giving up. The grandmother has an appointment with Mayo Clinic in Minnesota to see if Jordan can qualify for several procedure options; they would help turn less than perfect matches into a viable option.
"Keep pulling the antibodies out after the transplant until the body finally gives up and says 'well, I'm not going to reject it,'" Jones added.
This would mean people that have already signed up and were a close match could still possibly be a donor.
Jordan said he's ready to be a kid again, "give me a kidney, now!"
If you would like to be a possible donor, you can send an email to livingdonation@wakehealth.edu and request a donor kit.
Doctors said Jordan needs a donor with a Type A or Type O blood type.
Once you send the email, they will send you material to see if you are a possible match.
