ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A 11-year-old boy in St. Pete with a rare blood disorder continues to hope as a years-long search goes on for a compatible bone marrow transplant donor.
- King Grant in and out of hospitals most of his life
- Doctors initially said King wouldn't make it to five years old
- Donor registration: Gift of Life.org
King Grant plays video games inside his St. Petersburg home. He’s safer indoors because he has a rare blood disorder and underlying conditions that have weakened his immune system.
"They said he wasn’t going to make it to five years old," said King's mother, Latasha. "They said he wasn’t going to be able to talk or walk."
In and out of hospitals most of his life, King has been waiting for a bone marrow transplant for many years. Now it’s essential for his survival.
"Hoping a for miracle, so I pray a lot," Latasha told us.
"Unfortunately, it’s so hard to find King a match because King is African American and we are underrepresented with African Americans on the registry,” said Marc Silver, CEO of Marrow Nation. “You’re most likely going to match somebody of your own ethnic background."
While mom and son wait for a match, there are more trips to the hospital and there’s more time missed on the baseball field.
"He’s starting to get more infections now," said Grant. "We had to stop him from playing baseball."
A match will mean a new start.
"I can do more stuff and play and do a lot of stuff," said King.
We asked King what he was most looking forward to doing.
"Play baseball again," said King.
And what does he want to be when he grows up?
"A baseball player or a football player or a basketball player," answered King.
While playing sports will have to wait for now, the search for a match continues.
"He has so much to give the world," said Latasha.
If you believe you might be a match or you'd like to register as a donor, visit https://www.giftoflife.org/register?spcodeprm=king.