News
Texas toddler tops the transplant list
LONGVIEW, TX—Jaidan Steele’s life hinges on someone else dying.
For the 16-month-old awaiting a liver transplant, that is a simple fact of life, according to her mother, Jaime Steele.
“They don’t do living donors for liver transplants,” Steele said. A match must be made from someone with the right blood type and a similar weight.
Jaidan has spent more time in hospitals and doctors’ offices than most people who are decades older. The latest visit came Monday as fluid accumulated in her young stomach.
“She’s the happiest child in the world even though much of what she knows about are nurses with needles,” Steele said.
While Jaidan is oblivious to the life-and-death situation she lives with as she awaits a liver transplant, her family is all too familiar with the delicate balance of the toddler’s life.
