Scots boy, three, born prematurely dies in hospital after mum's plea for organ donor

A three-year-old Scots boy who was born prematurely has died in hospital after a plea from his mum for an organ donor.

Zachary Bradford from Kirkintilloch in East Dunbartonshire had a liver transplant when he was 22 months old after he was born prematurely at only 28 weeks in 2021.

During her ten-week pregnancy scan, mum Jade was told son Zachary had an abdominal wall defect.

He went on to form a bowel outside of his body, which ended up perforating at 28 weeks and led to an emergency C-section.

Zachary was taken into surgery as soon as he was born. Jade Earaker via Supplied

Zachary had to be fed through a central line and he was then diagnosed with intestinal failure and liver failure, which put him on the transplant list.

After a number of unsuccessful matches, he had become too ill to wait for the correct size of match donor required for the bowel transplant.

In order to survive acute liver failure, Zachary was forced to take a liver from an adult donor on August 24, 2024.

The operation was a success but Zachary contracted sepsis at a critical moment in recovery, which severely damaged his new liver.

His mum, in a bid to improve his odds of an organ match, made a number of powerful videos on TikTok to raise awareness of child organ donation.

However Jade confirmed on social media on Friday that her son had died “peacefully” in his parents’ arms on Thursday evening.

Jade said on Instagram: “After an intense three days in PICU, fighting till the very last moment, our boy left this world peacefully in our arms in the evening of January 2.

“I’m struggling to comprehend or find the words for you my baby boy. I am beyond broken, my everything has been taken away and the pain that is left feels insufferable.

“You were simply the happiness in our life, and it will never be the same without you. You have taught us all so many lessons in your short life, and the one we really need to remember just now is to keep going, to keep smiling no matter the pain.

“I love you Zachary. Sweet Dreams my beautiful boy, we will see you soon.”

There are around 260 children in the UK waiting for a transplant.

According to NHS Blood and Transplant, there are 40-50 paediatric organ donors each year, and around 200 children receive organ transplants, which means five waiting for more than one organ.