WAUKESHA, Wis. (WSVN) — A Wisconsin couple is desperately searching for a donor who can give part of their liver to their 5-month-old son with an extremely rare medical condition.
According to WISN, Whitney McLean and Tony Albers have two children with the same life-threatening condition: immunodeficiency 47.
“[It’s] extremely rare. There are only, from what we were told, there are only 12 cases in the world,” McLean said.
Both of McLean and Albers’ children are on the liver transplant list, however, their baby boy Marcus is in urgent need of a liver after the disease already destroyed his.
“We were told that Marcus has weeks to live, and that was a week and a half ago, so it’s pretty dire,” Marcus’ mother said.
None of Marcus’ family qualifies as a donor, so he needs part of a stranger’s liver.
McLean told WISN that they are looking for someone with a blood type of either O positive or O negative, under 150 pounds, under the age of 50, in good health, a non-smoker, not a heavy drinker and not recently pregnant.
Marcus’ 2-year-old brother will also need a liver transplant at some point.
Now, the family is hoping a stranger will come forward and offer to be a donor so the two brothers can grow up together.
The family has set up a GoFundMe page to help raise money for Marcus’ medical expenses. To donate, click here.
If you meet the criteria and are interested in connecting with the family, send an e-mail to marcustransplantchw@gmail.com.
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