Florida dad's plea goes TikTok-viral in search of stem cell donor for son

TAMPA, Fla. - Juan Uribe is a father looking for a stem cell donor to match with his 15-year-old son, Max.

The backstory:

"Hi, my name is Juan, and I'm posting this because I need your help to save my son," Uribe said in his now viral TikTok.

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Uribe is mobilizing the masses with the power of social media to find a donor.

"He has a very rare blood disorder that right now is called clonal cytopenia," Uribe said.

Without a stem cell transplant, it will turn into blood cancer.

"They're incredibly rare in kids and incredibly deadly," Uribe said.

Max's five-year outcome without the transplant is grim.

"Chances are he would die. He wouldn't make it," Uribe said. "We wouldn't have him five years from now."

The Uribe family thought they had a match, and it fell through.

"It's a parent's worst nightmare," Uribe said. "It is awful."

Now, they need a stranger to step in to save his life.

"Please click on the link, request the kit to be sent home, swab, return it and then pray that my son is able to find a perfect match," Uribe urged in his first video.

Dig deeper:

His first ever TikTok took off.

Now, with nearly 14 million views, he credits retired NFL defensive end and social media star Isaac Rochell for making it go viral by resharing it.

"And then things began to build on that. And we've been fortunate people like Tinx, Joe Jonas, and countless others," Uribe said. "And I am so appreciative of everyone, regardless of whether they have a million followers or 10 followers."

Now there's another hurdle for Uribe.

By the numbers:

Latinos only have a 5% chance of matching compared to 80% for Caucasians because there are not enough Latinos registered to donate.

"Hispanics are 20% of the population, and they're about half of that in the bone marrow registries," Uribe said. "So, there's a huge underrepresentation. And I do think that in part, it's probably an awareness issue."

Uribe explained that matches have to do with genetic makeup and that is related to race.

It is even more difficult for Latinos, many of whom are mixed race.

Max is 50% Columbian, so finding a match is an involved process.

People in Florida could solve this problem for Uribe by registering to see if they are a match.

Uribe explained that the largest populations of people with a similar genetic makeup to his son reside in Boston, New York City and Florida, specifically Southern Florida.

Big picture view:

Uribe is trying to single-handedly change the statistic that Latinos have a low chance of matching.

Uribe’s video inspired 12,000 people to request a kit from NMDP, the nationwide stem cell and bone marrow registry, smashing the previous single day record.

"Definitely this has broken all previous records," Erica Sevilla, public relations manager at NMDP, said. "I think our last record for 24-hour kit requests was over 4,000. And so, to hit 12,000 in 24 hours, that's the power of TikTok and social media."

What you can do:

NMDP will send you a kit for free.

"It comes with two swab kits inside and, so you just swab the inside of each cheek for 10 seconds, and then it comes with a postage paid return envelope," Sevilla said.

You just have to make sure you follow the instructions and send it back.

"You're only called for additional testing if you're identified as a potential match for a patient," Sevilla said. "So, we ask people to just be committed to donate to anybody because there are 12,000 patients every year who are looking for an unrelated donor."

Locally, doctors said the process to donate your stem cells is relatively easy.

Ivan Borrello is a physician at Tampa General Hospital and the director of Myeloma BMT and the Soul Therapy Program.

"It's sort of like dialysis," Borrello said. "Blood is sucked out. The stem cells are saved, and then the blood is put back in."

Uribe said the process is confidential, but he would like to meet his son's donor.

"I would be prepared to give my life to whoever saves my son's life," Uribe said. "So yes, I'd want to meet them so that I could thank them."

NMDP said if you are called upon to donate, they will cover all costs, including your travel and missed work.

If you are interested in joining the stem cell and bone marrow registry, you can learn more here.

FloridaHealth