Family aims to help man with rare blood disorder

Brother of man with JAK2 says 39-year-old needs multiple organ transplants

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The family of a 39-year-old Jacksonville man diagnosed with a rare blood mutation is hoping for a Christmas miracle.

Steve Austin has a blood disorder called JAK2 that prevents blood from clotting normally and causes internal bleeding.

Doctors said that he will need a massive organ transplant procedure to survive.

"It's kind of the transplant lottery he's looking to win," said Scott Austin, Steve's brother.

In the spirit of the season, Steve Austin's family and friends are raising awareness to help his cause. Scott Austin set up a fundraiser for his brother selling T-shirts. It's a small gesture that he hopes will turn into a big movement.

"Bonds are formed through adversity. And we've been through adversity. He's been through adversity," Scott Austin said. "For a long-term prognosis, he could go years and years without having any issues. But the problem is, the moment he does, it could be the last one."
 
In August, the 39-year-old actor and former personal trainer was diagnosed with JAK2. The disease causes blood cells to grow abnormally and burst, also causing internal bleeding. 


 
It's something that's put Steve Austin in and out of the hospital, and now he is in need of a massive organ transplant procedure.
 
"It's one of the most invasive transplants a person can get," Scott Austin said. "He needs part of a new small intestine, a liver, pancreas, a spleen. Some of those things you don't even need but because of the damage that's been done, it has to be taken out and replaced along with a lot of the veins and circulatory components.
"He's a fighter," Scott Austin said. "He knows he can get through this, but when he realized, you know, this is going to mean the end of someone else's life, that hit him hard."

Scott Austin is hitting fundraising hard, selling #LiftUpYourBro T-shirts inspired by one of the brothers' most beloved Bible verses: Ecclesiastes 4:9-10.

ONLINE: To donate or learn more, go to booster.com/liftupyourbro

"The main thing is that Steve doesn't just want it to be about him, the whole 'Lift Up Your Bro' thing. He wants to inspire people," Scott Austin said. "So if they can help him with money, that's great. If you want to buy a T-shirt, that's cool. More importantly, if they can pray for him, you know, that's what's going to make a miracle really happen."

So far, Trinity Fitness in Jacksonville has been getting the word out and buying T-shirts, and it's spread all over the country. Scott Austin said CrossFit NOLA in New Orleans has been a tremendous help for the campaign. He said the majority of the people who have stepped up have never even met his brother.

Due to complications with the blood disorder, Steve Austin has spent the last 24 hours in the hospital, but Scott Austin said his brother is improving and was hoping to be released sometime Wednesday night.