Bradford family needs kidney donor with type O blood

Bradford teenager Uqbah Mohammed, who has stage five Chronic Kidney Disease, is waiting for a kidney donor match whilst undergoing dialysis three times a week.

Uqbah’s kidneys have now completely deteriorated - meaning the clock is ticking even faster in the search for a suitable donor.

Her mum Ummarah Irshad, who sadly wasn’t a match, now fears she could lose another daughter.

A decade ago, she had to somehow comprehend the awful news that her four-year-old child, Haniah Muhammad, had suddenly died due to a brain tumour.

Hania, right, and sister Uqbah (Image: Google)

Ummarah’s sister, Naila Khan, said dialysis is not a cure.

She told the Telegraph & Argus: “It’s just a means of buying time, it’s not a cure of treatment. The real treatment will only come from a successful transplant. 

“We’re looking for O positive. We’re looking for somebody hopefully South Asian but we don’t want to cap it to that. With there not being anything at the minute, the doctors have relaxed the requirements list so they’re looking between 80 and 90 per cent match as opposed to 100 per cent, so they can have more people coming forward.

“You never know somebody else might come forward who can help from a different background. It’s just a long shot.”

Uqbah has had multiple health ailments from birth, including galactosemia, right eye congenital ptosis, and autism.

Uqbah, pictured has faced health struggles all her life (Image: Google)

She has always been tube-fed because orally she will not take food due to her environmental and mental delay.

Doctors expected Uqbah's first dialysis line to last at least a year - but it failed after less than three months. 

After the first line left her bleeding and fighting an infection, Uqbah is now on her second line.

Reflecting on Uqbah’s worsening condition, Naila said: “Her situation, it’s dire at the minute. It’s a case of seeing how long she can go with the dialysis. You never know when things will get worse. They can’t really time it but in terms of quality of life it’s definitely deteriorating. 

Uqbah Mohammed, pictured, at the hospital (Image: Family handout)

“Even the fact she’s got the central line in now she’s becoming a lot more sensitive to viruses, her immune systems a lot weaker.

“With Uqbah, she’s got a lot of health issues, some of which are mental health issues and for that reason when God hasn’t even given you the sense of knowing you’re going through trouble, for her it’s a blessing. It’s like she’s got a permanent smile on her face. She doesn’t understand she’s going through this. 

“Maybe it’s a blessing she doesn’t have the awareness, maybe God doesn’t want her to know the trouble. That’s our understanding of reassuring ourselves. 

“She’s very jolly. But the fact she can’t speak about it, she can get frustrated a lot.

Uqbah Mohammed, pictured, still remains jolly, her auntie says (Image: Family handout)

“My sisters quite strong on faith and believing in tests in this life. As Uqbah’s situation has deteriorated over the last five or six months I do see a desperation in my sister’s tone and her approach to seeking a donor. Even when the doctors mentioned at one point if there’s no donor, if the dialysis didn’t work, then they would have to let her go, that was something that absolutely turned Ummarah’s world upside down. 

“She’s like her world and purpose of living.

“Uqbah’s got very complex needs and it’s hard work for anybody but the fact Ummarah uses that as a means of escaping all her worries, for her it was a way of survival [after losing Hania]. Her world would collapse.”

Anyone who thinks they could be a possible kidney donor match for Uqbah should email leedskidneyappeal@nhs.net

Eligible donors include those with type O or type O positive blood.

Uqbah’s cousin, Yasin, has issued a heartfelt appeal to the public.

“Unfortunately due to Uqbah’s rare blood type, type O, none of the members of our family are able to step forward,” he said.

“I’ve reached out to you today in hopes that a member of the public will selflessly step forward, in the hopes that Ummarah does not have to lose another child.”

He added: “Unfortunately the donors who have reached out so far have not been matches and Uqbah’s kidney functions continue to drop. We are at the stage where previously her kidneys were functioning at 11 per cent but now it has reached eight per cent and with concerns that if this drops to five per cent or below, we’re looking at the terrifying result of kidney failure at best and death at worse.”