The Story Of 11 Year Old Alex Kirby Who Has Double Kidney Failure

This is an amazing story I would like to ask everyone to help Alex, life is not always fair, but this Kid seems to take it all in stride. There is a fundraiser in his small home town, but that will not cover it. You can donate to the bank, and his mother works 8 hours a day there to..

Alex was diagnosed with End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD).  He is an otherwise healthy 11 year old boy about to start middle school.  He is active in Boy Scouts and looks forward to meetings every Sunday.  It is actually thanks to Boy Scouts that he was diagnosed.  The Scoutmaster requires all scouts have a physical before going to summer camp.  It was by this physical that the doctor found his kidney failure. 

We live in a small town in Iowa and the local clinic is not equipped to handle such situations, so we were referred to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinic's Children's Hospital in Iowa City, IA.  Alex was put through many tests, all of which pointed to double kidney failure.  They then put a catheter in his neck so he could start hemodialysis immediately.  He stayed on hemodialysis for about 4 weeks.  During this time, he underwent surgery to have a catheter put in his stomach so that he could start peritoneal dialysis (PD).  He is now home and able to continue PD.  He gets hooked up to a machine that puts a solution into his abdomen that helps to filter all the toxins his kidneys are not able to.  He is currently on the machine approximately 7 hours every day.  This will eventually increase to 10-11 hours/day. 

Some of the symptoms of ESRD are lethargy, bruises easily, dryness in the nasal membranes, decreased hormone production, and problems concentrating.  Looking back, Alex had all the symptoms, but due to being a "normal" kid, the symptoms were overlooked for many years.  The doctors are unable to find a cause for Alex's kidney failure and are unsure if we will ever know. 

Starting in September or November, the transplant committee will begin the search for a matching donor.  Although both of his kidneys are no longer working, he will only receive one donated kidney.  Alex has 2 older sisters that, even if they are a match, will not be able to donate due to their age.  So he is depending on other family members, friends, or possibly someone he has never met.

Thank you for thinking about Alex and his family.  This has been a very big adjustment in our lives, but Alex is a strong boy and is always trying to find the positive in all this.  When we sat him down and explained all this to him, all he had to say was "Will I have a scar?"  When told he would, his reaction was "Cooool!!, Chicks dig scars!"

I have attached a few pictures of him, thanks again for taking the time to think about Alex.  We have set up an account for donations at F&M Bank in Eldora, IA under Alex's name, Alexander Kirby.  The bank's address and phone number are listed below.

F&M Bank

1402 Washington

Eldora, IA  50627

(641) 858-5411