Appleton family searching for kidney donor for son

APPLETON, Wis. (WBAY) -An Appleton family is looking for a miracle, in the form of a kidney donor for their 2-year-old son.

Looking at 2-year-old Arlo Lesatz you’d never know he spends eight hours a night, hooked up to machines that help to keep him alive.

According to his dad, Max Lesatz, ‘He’s quite a happy guy. He loves playing, loves running around, actually got really into peekaboo again lately, so it’s been fun.”

But, Arlo is in end-stage renal failure -- after being born with chronic kidney disease. Twelve surgeries and many hospital stays later, he’s been receiving in-home dialysis, every day, for more than six months.

“Arlo needs a kidney. He needs a kidney to have a healthy life. He can’t be on dialysis forever, and because he’s so young we’re hoping to do a live kidney donation, meaning having a living donor give their kidney,” says his mom Liz Lesatz.

Unfortunately, neither of his parents can donate to him. So, his family and team of health care professionals at Children’s Wisconsin and Froedtert in Milwaukee are looking for that selfless person willing to help this little boy.

His dad adds, “It would be great to be able to set Arlo onto that next path forward, so being that it’s obviously something that is emotional but being something that we’re not able to provide him, someone being able to provide that gift for him would be amazing.”

Arlo’s ideal donor needs to be a healthy adult with either type A or O blood. His parents are hoping to find that person sooner rather than later.

“This is an illness for Arlo that is not going to go away, and there will still be struggles that come with it even when he gets a kidney, but it just is that peace of mind that he can have a longer, happier life and just get to be a normal kid,” says his mom.

To see if you could help donate a kidney to Arlo, visit the Froedtert website.

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