WATCH - Northern Ireland family appeal for 'a kidney for Kyle' after new setback - 'You could be the person who gives Kyle the chance of a healthier future'

Kyle Park, 34, who lives on a farm outside Antrim is described by his sister Bethany as ‘having moderate learning difficulties’. She said when she was only 10-months-old he took five vibral convulsions in one night.

And soon after that consultants later found out that only one kidney was functioning at a low percentage.

Tests later showed that Kyle has HDR syndrome and renal dysplasia.

But now he is in Stage 4 kidney failure.

"We received some very sad news following Kyle’s hospital appointment to check the function of his kidney,” said Kyle.

"Kyle’s kidney function has now dropped to 14%, which means he is officially on the kidney transplant list.

"This means we now need to find a suitable match for Kyle as soon as possible. The consultant is hoping and praying that, if everything goes as planned, Kyle will be able to have his transplant in the New Year.

“Thankfully, apart from his Stage 4 kidney failure, Kyle is otherwise healthy, which gives us hope moving forward.

"As a family, this is heartbreaking and a very scary time. There are so many unknowns, and although we always knew this day would eventually come, we never expected it to happen so soon.

"But one thing we do know is that we’ve got this together. We will stand strong, loud and proud as a family and support Kyle every step of the way on this next part of his health journey”.

She added that for Kyle “this journey can be even more difficult to understand and process” as Kyle lives with hypoparathyroidism, sensorineural deafness, renal dysplasia and moderate learning difficulties, alongside his kidney failure”.

Bethany is now asking for a match for Kyle.

"If anyone would be willing to come forward and be tested to see if they could potentially be a suitable kidney donor for our precious Kyle, please get in touch,” she said.

"You could be the person who gives Kyle the chance of a healthier future.

"We completely understand that becoming a donor is a huge and very personal decision, but even being willing to get tested could mean more than we could ever put into words.

"Our precious Kyle deserves every chance, and we will do everything we can to help him get there.”

Adding that Kyle has always “been a huge Mark Allen fan” she said that he has recently “been very moved by the Antrim snooker player's recent candid discussions about his own mental health”.

“So many nights have been spent sitting with Mum until midnight watching Mark play, and we have made so many special memories travelling to watch him play live,” she said.

"Reading Mark’s words really touched us. Sometimes we never truly know what someone is going through behind closed doors, and Mark’s honesty about his struggles, his family and finding the strength to keep going is incredibly powerful.

“As a family, this means even more to us because our own Kyle is currently facing a huge battle.

"At just 34-years-old, Kyle is now on the kidney transplant list, waiting for a suitable donor and hoping for the chance of a second chance at life”.

If you can help, contact Bethany on [email protected]