Manitoba teen adopted from Ukraine in need of kidney transplant
A Steinbach area teen is hoping for the gift of life.
Thirteen-year-old Fallon Steeves found out she was in end-stage renal failure not long after she was adopted from Ukraine in mid-2020.
She is one of 11 children adopted by Sharon and Rob Steeves from the same orphanage.
"I actually had, really, fun with them, that's why when they asked me if they wanted to adopt us I say, ‘yes,’ because they are really good parents," said Fallon.
Fallon has been waiting on the transplant list ever since. Sharon said finding a kidney donor is proving to be a challenge because the family doesn't know her full family history and Fallon’s blood type is B positive, which is rare.
Sharon said Fallon has been on the waitlist longer than most kids and the last ten weeks or so have been very rocky for Fallon’s health.
“Normally kids get a kidney before anybody else because they're children, but because Fallon is a very rare blood group, they haven’t been able to find a match," she said.
The Steeves have also unsuccessfully tried to find a living donor among family and friends.
They’ve been waiting for a match for several years now and Fallon's medication depletes the family's drug coverage in only a few months.
Each night she goes to bed early and is hooked up to dialysis that cleans her blood while she sleeps. There are many things she would rather be doing.
"I want to watch a movie or play a board game or something like that," said Fallon.
"Since she came to Canada she hasn’t really experienced what real family life is, because we've had to hook her up to a machine for 11 hours every night," said Sharon.
The Steeves are hoping their story compels someone to become a living kidney donor even if the organ goes to someone else on the list.
"There are lots of kids on the transplant list that need kidneys and if you’re a younger person and you're healthy, consider being a kidney donor," said Sharon.
But if Fallon finds a match, she would get to play sports and be a more independent teenager without being tied to a machine.
"I would be really happy and I would really be thankful for the person who gave me a kidney," she said.
More information on living kidney donation can be found through Transplant Manitoba.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Quebec judge orders bus driver to stand trial for 2023 daycare crash deaths
A judge has ordered a Quebec man to stand trial on charges of first-degree murder in the deaths of two children killed when a bus rammed into a Montreal-area daycare last year.
Trudeau promises $1B in loans for child-care providers to expand care centres
The federal government is launching a new loan program to help child-care providers in Canada expand their spaces, and will be extending further student loan forgiveness and training options for early childhood educators, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Thursday.
Where is the worst place for allergy sufferers in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
Multiple bridges in Calgary shut down for police incident
Calgary police have shut down a number of bridges into and out of the downtown core as officers deal with a distraught individual.
N.B. man wins $64 million from Lotto 6/49
A New Brunswicker will go to bed Thursday night much richer than he was Wednesday after collecting on a winning lottery ticket he let sit on his bedroom dresser for nearly a year.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.
'Nonsense:' Doug Ford slams lawsuits filed by Ontario school boards against social media platforms
Premier Doug Ford says that lawsuits launched by four Ontario school boards against a trio of social media platforms are “nonsense” and risk becoming a distraction to the work that really matters.
Do these exercises for core strength if you can't stomach doing planks
Planks are one of the most effective exercises for strengthening your midsection, as they target all of your major core muscles: the transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, external obliques and internal obliques. Yet despite the popularity of various 10-minute plank challenges, planking is actually one of the most dreaded core exercises, according to many fitness experts.