43M Donors Later, No Match for Teen With Rare Disorder

A father’s first TikTok post has turned into both a personal plea and a wider push for public health awareness.

Juan Uribe, 51, joined the platform in February after learning that his 15-year-old son, Max, urgently needs a stem cell transplant within a few months. Doctors say the procedure is necessary to prevent Max’s rare blood disorder from developing into an aggressive form of blood cancer.

Finding a compatible donor has proven extremely difficult. According to ABC News, physicians have searched a global registry of nearly 43 million donors but have not identified a single perfect match. Even Max’s twin sister was not compatible. Uribe, who is Colombian, said his son’s mixed Latino and Caucasian heritage—his wife is white—makes his HLA tissue typing especially challenging to match.

In his TikTok video, Uribe asks viewers to “help to save my son.” The post quickly spread across the platform, surpassing 34 million views by Friday morning. The attention has prompted thousands of people to request cheek-swab kits to join the stem cell donor registry through NMDP, the organization formerly known as Be The Match.

NMDP reports that more than 59,000 people have signed up as potential donors since the video went viral. Advocates say the surge could benefit many patients of color, who statistically have a harder time finding compatible donors. Uribe has set an ambitious goal of adding 1 million new names to the registry and hopes that one day joining it will become as common as registering to vote or applying for a driver’s license.

Uribe returned to TikTok on March 17 to provide an update and announce the launch of a new website dedicated to the effort. In the video, he emphasized the urgency of the search.

“The clock is ticking. Time is running out,” Uribe said. “We really only have about 16 days to find that match and get people swabbed so we can help Max.”

That message was posted 10 days ago as the search for a compatible donor continues.

Original Source