Viral Media Push Connects Child With Severe Hemophilia To UW Medicine Kidney Transplant After Year On Dialysis

Milwaukee boy With Hemophilia Off Dialysis After kidney transplant

USA: A Milwaukee boy who spent a year battling severe hemophilia and stage five kidney failure is off dialysis and regaining strength after receiving a kidney transplant on March 3. Reporters who first met him only by video a year ago described a dramatically different patient this week—smiling, clearer of mind and no longer tethered to thrice-weekly treatments.

His father, Michael “Big Mike” Haggler, used his large social media platform to chronicle the family’s search for help, sharing the boy’s medical journey and connecting them with other families and clinicians. Those public posts helped open doors and ultimately led the family to UW Medicine, which coordinated the transplantation pathway that culminated in the March operation.

The transplant has already translated into simple freedoms: fewer dietary restrictions and the ability to enjoy snacks and drinks that dialysis had prohibited. After a year of strict limits and exhausting treatments, the family is celebrating small milestones—going to the movies and savoring a favorite slushie—things they could not do before the operation.

Medical teams caution recovery is ongoing, but the operation has given the boy a clear window to imagine a different life. His parents and care providers are focused on rehabilitation and follow-up care in Milwaukee as he transitions from transplantation and dialysis dependence toward renewed normalcy.

Video originally published on 2026-03-25 22:24:17