SAN ANTONIO – The day after Father’s Day, some pediatric kidney patients and their dads are asking for people to register to be an organ donor.
Across Texas, 81 children are waiting for a new kidney, but some of them have a harder time finding a match than others, including those who have had a failed kidney transplant.
These children are known as "sensitized" patients, because they have been exposed to foreign proteins and have developed antibodies against it.
Sensitized patients are more likely to reject a kidney, but a larger donor pool will increase the chances of finding an organ with no pre-existing antibodies, health officials said.
To survive, these children undergo dialysis treatments, which are an artificial process that helps filter toxins from the blood until another donor kidney can be found.
Diego Smith,14, is undergoing dialysis treatment at University Hospital after his kidney transplant failed.
Smith has been on the waiting list since 2015, and said unlike other kids, he has to watch what he drinks.
"You can't eat a lot of stuff that normal kids can. And you can't drink a lot either. So when you are like over the limit you can't drink anymore," Smith said.
Smith, Jack Buller, 9, and Angelica Cantu, 18, have teamed up with the University Transplant Center to spread the word about being transplant donors.
To help kids like Smith, register to become a living donor at donatelife.org. Donors must be between ages of the 21-70 along with other requirements. To become an altruistic donor, you can find more information at mattswish.com.