Doctors with the South Texas Transplant Center have performed 70 kidney transplants at the McAllen Medical Center since opening their doors back in 2007, but there are still many more Valley residents on the waiting list hoping they will be next.
When you're 27 years old, it's not something you expect to hear.
"The doctors were telling me there's something wrong with your kidneys," said Victor Blanco who is on the waiting list for a kidney.
Blanco said his doctor told him that at the intensive care unit.
"Being in the ICU was not fun at all and it was just traumatic," said Blanco.
After running tests, doctors found Blanco's kidneys were two centimeters smaller than normal, and they weren't functioning properly.
"I was, you know very sad," he said. "I was crying."
Blanco said he felt alone and didn't know what to do.
"I was just praying that I'd get the answers," he said.
Doctors have Blanco on dialysis three times a week, and he is on the waiting list for a kidney.
"It's not going to be easy, but I have to overcome that obstacle, so that I can go back to my normal life again," said Blanco.
Blanco is just one out of the over 300 patients at the transplant center at the McAllen Medical Center that are waiting for a kidney.
Roger Luna, the director of South Texas Transplant Center said the wait time could vary.
"Some could be 3 to 4 months," he said "Some could be 3 to 5 years it all depends on your blood type."
He said that's why it's important for people to sign up to be donors.
Although Blanco doesn't know where he is on the list, he said he's just happy to be alive, and he stives to keep a positive attitude.
"If you don't have that positive motivation on you, you have to somehow get that because it's not easy getting a transplant," he said.
Blanco said it helps that his friends and family are so supportive.
For more information on the transplant center visit South Texas Transplant Center.
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