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24-year-old Houston man takes to the street to search for kidney donor

A 24-year-old Houston man needs your help, he’s in need of a kidney donor. And his search has taken him to the streets.

HOUSTON — A 24-year-old Houston man in need of a kidney donor has taken his search to the streets.

Victor Robles has been on dialysis for a year and a half. He found out he had kidney failure after he ended up in an emergency room when he cut his finger. Now, he says he’s going to do everything he can to find a donor.

It’s not a typical way for a 24-year-old to be spending 12 hours of his day connected to his dialysis machine, but for Robles, it's keeping him alive. He connects himself every day after 6 pm and sleeps with the dialysis machine.

Victor is on a transplant list, but he began to worry after doctors told him his blood tests weren't coming back well. 

"My results were not passing," Robles said. "My blood was a little bit dirty."

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So, he decided to do something about it.

"I don’t really know a lot of people, my circle is really small. So that is why I am trying to see who would be willing to help me out," said Robles. 

In search of a donor, he took to the streets. In his spare time after work, Robles finds a corner in this city and stands with a sign that says, "I don’t want money I just need one kidney. Who can help?"

"For another chance for me to live," Robles said. 

Dr. Steve Bynon at UT Health and Memorial Herman says rates of kidney failure in Hispanic people in the Houston area are high. They’re actually the majority of the cases they see.

"It very high in that population diabetes is very common in the Hispanic population and renal failure leading for transplant in this country," said Dr. Bynon. 

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The wait time for these patients can be long.

"Generally it's between 5 or 6 years at least," Dr. Bynon said. 

And Victor says that’s why every chance he gets, he finds a corner to stand on,  hoping someone passing by feels compassion for him. 

"I want to get married, have kids, work for what I want," said Robles. 

He hasn't lost faith that one day, a person inside one of those cars will help save his life.

If you would like to find out if you're a match for Robles you can check Houston Methodist's website or contact Robles at 713-998-0669.

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