On May 30, 2025, the Fountain Hills resident became the first patient to receive a lung transplant through Mayo Clinic's new Lung Transplant Program. Craig had been living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a progressive lung condition that affects more than 16 million Americans. Although treatments can help manage symptoms, the disease has no cure and gradually makes breathing more difficult over time. 

For Craig, the journey to transplant was years in the making. Barely able to walk 15 feet while using an oxygen tank, Craig's life had become very limiting. 

A former flooring installer, he spent decades working in environments with airborne dust and particles. He also had a family history of COPD. As his disease progressed, everyday activities became increasingly difficult. Breathing became a challenge, and simple tasks required more energy than they once had. Eventually, doctors determined a lung transplant offered the best path forward. 

Now, Craig is celebrating more than a milestone. He's celebrating what he calls his "lung anniversary," one year since the transplant that allowed him to breathe easier, regain his independence and return to the activities he loves. "I’m back to doing nearly everything I did before COPD," he says. "I was eager to get back to my life, but getting in shape takes time. I’m happy to say I’ve just started training for the Thanksgiving Turkey Trot." He's also now back at work as a handyman and once again doing many of the activities COPD had taken away from him. The moments he now enjoys, whether working, spending time with family or simply staying active, are reminders of how much has changed in a single year.  

Watch: The first patient to receive a lung transplant through Mayo Clinic in Arizona's new lung transplant program provides an update on how he's doing

Journalists: Broadcast-quality sound bites of Craig Schere and Dr. D'Cuhna are available in the downloads at the bottom of the posts. Name super/CG: Jonathan D'Cuhuna, MD/Surgical Director of the Mayo Clinic Lung Transplant Program in Arizona/Mayo Clinic.

Throughout his recovery, Craig says he has remained mindful of the donor whose gift made his transplant possible. "The life I have now is possible because of my donor's generosity. I celebrate both my birthday and the day of my transplant because what I can do now is remarkable, and it's only possible because of that gift," says Craig. 

The historic procedure marked not only a turning point in his personal health journey but also a significant milestone for transplant care in Arizona. Some neighboring states do not offer lung transplant programs, meaning patients often must travel far from home, family and support networks to receive care. The Arizona program helps address that gap by allowing more patients to remain closer to home throughout evaluation, transplant surgery and recovery.  

While Craig was the first patient in the new program, he is no longer the only one. In its first year, Mayo Clinic's Arizona lung transplant program brought together a multidisciplinary team of medical and surgical experts to broaden access to care for patients in the region with advanced lung disease.

Dr. Johnathan D'Cunha is the chair of Cardiothoracic Surgery and the surgical director of the Mayo Clinic Lung Transplant Program in Arizona. He performed Craig's transplant. “Craig is now living out loud because he has so much hope ahead. Mayo Clinic Transplant Center is one of the largest and most comprehensive transplant programs in the world, which allows us to care for the most complex and serious patients. The program's success reflects the close collaboration of our Arizona team and strong coordination across Mayo Clinic Transplant Center," Dr. D'Cuhna says.  

For Craig, however, the anniversary is about gratitude. 

"I'm grateful to have this time with my family, my 14 grandchildren and six great-grandchildren, and look forward to what's next for me," says Craig. As he celebrates his first lung anniversary, Craig's story is a reminder of what transplantation makes possible: not just more years of life, but the opportunity to fully live them. 

Learn more about lung transplantation.  

Related

• (VIDEO) Breathing easy thanks to the gift of life and new Mayo Clinic Lung Transplant Program in Arizona

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After an exceptionally rare diagnosis, a lifesaving bone marrow transplant and a near-fatal infection that pushed his body to the brink, Mike Sonnabend is not only alive — he's back to doing what once seemed impossible. 

Mike Sonnabend, a husband and father to three sons, enjoys being active — not just physically but also in the Rochester, Minnesota, community. The special education teacher and head coach of cross-country and track was preparing for an adventurous Scouting trip to the Florida Keys with his oldest son, Sam, and needed to complete a physical as part of the trip requirements.  

During the exam, his Mayo Clinic family medicine physician, Dr. Lori Bates, noticed that his spleen felt enlarged. Mike didn't think anything of it — he was feeling fine and had no symptoms. But after undergoing several tests and a bone marrow biopsy before leaving for his trip, he had a feeling he would come back to bad news.  

He was right. On July 3, 2014, Mike was diagnosed with a serious and complex disease consisting of leukemia — a cancer of the body's blood-forming tissues, including the bone marrow and the lymphatic system — and a bone marrow failure disorder, where blood cells don't develop normally. It's an incredibly rare condition — with very few cases worldwide — and is incurable with standard treatments.  

Mike's hematologist, Dr. Mrinal Patnaik, explained that a bone marrow transplant, a procedure that infuses healthy blood-forming stem cells into the body to replace bone marrow that's not producing enough healthy blood cells, would be the most effective treatment.  

"I knew that I couldn't fight this on my own. My Mayo Clinic care team is the experts, so I let them take care of the fighting, and I focused on what I could control — my family, my mindset and my recovery." 

As news of Mike's diagnosis spread, his family, friends, colleagues and community members quickly rallied around him and offered support.  

A rare diagnosis becomes even more complex 

Mike was referred to Dr. Mithun Shah, a Mayo Clinic transplant hematologist to ensure he was physically prepared for the transplant.  

All was going well with Mike's pretransplant testing until a pulmonary function test showed his lung function was much lower than expected. Because bone marrow transplants involve extensive treatments with a long, complex recovery, unexplained lung issues could make the procedure too dangerous. 

"We have a rare disease, and now there is a unique lung presentation. Our culture of collaboration at Mayo Clinic is where we shine. I picked up the phone and called my colleagues in hematology, pulmonology, pathology and other specialties — and we worked together, in real time, to assess risks and adapt Mike's treatment plans," says Dr. Shah.  

Dr. Shah referred Mike to Dr. Vivek Iyer, a Mayo Clinic pulmonologist, to help diagnose and treat the lung problem.  

"Transplant patients often have complex medical issues affecting multiple organ systems, so different specialties often need to collaborate expeditiously to solve critical issues that could delay or even prevent a successful transplantation," says Dr. Iyer.  

A lung biopsy confirmed that Mike had eosinophilic pneumonia, a rare and serious inflammatory lung condition. When steroids failed to resolve it, Dr. Iyer prescribed a monoclonal antibody-based therapy typically used for severe asthma that stabilized his lungs and kept his transplant on track — until another barrier emerged: Mike's enlarged spleen began draining his energy and appetite. In December 2019, doctors removed the massive organ, allowing his care team to move forward with his carefully planned transplant approach that would treat his leukemia while protecting his lungs.  

It worked. Mike had a successful transplant in 2020.  

Driven by a mindset focused on progress, Mike was back to coaching, teaching and running within a time frame that was "absolutely incredible," according to Dr. Shah.  

"My approach was to take the next step, trust the process and keep moving forward," says Mike.  

That same resilience would become even more evident five years later, when his journey took another dramatic turn.  

From stability to a sudden, life-threatening turn 

It was April 14, 2025. Around mid-morning, Mike began to feel fatigued, feverish and disoriented. He left work early and went to lie down, setting an alarm so he could make it to track practice that afternoon.  

But Mike wasn't well enough to make it to practice. Sam, who coaches with his dad, remembers having a sinking feeling, especially because he hadn't heard from him.  

"My dad would never not show up without letting me or the other coaches know, let alone even miss a day," says Sam.  

Sam went home after practice to check on his dad. Mike had slept through his alarm, had a high fever and was disoriented. Sam and his mom took him to Mayo Clinic's Emergency Department.  

"I don’t remember much," says Mike. "I remember going to the emergency room, and then it went black." 

Doctors soon determined he was battling bacterial meningitis, an infection that triggered overwhelming sepsis. For transplant patients like Mike, whose immune systems are compromised and who no longer have a spleen, even common bacteria can become life-threatening. 

Within hours, multiple organs began failing. His kidneys shut down, his blood pressure crashed and his body's clotting system began breaking down. He was transferred to the intensive care unit (ICU), where his condition became so dire that his family was called in to prepare for the worst. 

Mike's care again became a full-scale, multidisciplinary effort. Specialists across Mayo Clinic mobilized simultaneously — including experts in critical care, infectious diseases, nephrology, transplant medicine, vascular medicine, rehabilitation and more, meeting in real time to exchange ideas and make quick decisions together. 

"Mayo Clinic’s team-based approach is critical in situations like this. We needed everyone's expertise to give Mike the best chance of survival," says Dr. Shah.  

For Mike and his family, that collaboration was visible every day. 

"There was so much brainpower in that room, you could almost feel it," Mike says. "You could see the wheels turning. Everybody was trying to think of every possible thing to save me." 

Sam, who had since become a nurse after being inspired by his father's earlier cancer journey, helped guide the family through the most difficult moments.  

"Mayo Clinic did a great job of individualizing our care and really being there for us as a family," says Sam. "They gave us all the time we needed to ask questions — I felt like there wasn't a time clock on any of our interactions." 

Mike's journey was precarious, and at several points, his survival remained uncertain. But through relentless determination — and the coordinated expertise of dozens of Mayo Clinic specialists — Mike made another extraordinary recovery.  

Survival fueled by resilience and expertise 

"That was one of the toughest cases of my life," says Dr. Shah of Mike's most recent hospitalization. "Him pulling through and walking out of the ICU was one of my most satisfying moments." 

One year later, Mike feels good. He has his strength back, is exercising and is almost back to 100%.  

"I shouldn’t be here. I threw so many rare situations at my care team, and each time, they saved my life," says Mike. "There's no way you can get expertise like this anywhere else. It's incredible." 

Sam is grateful for the time he spent with his dad throughout his healthcare journey. 

"My dad is resilient, strong and the bravest person I know," says Sam. "I could tell he was scared, but he would always say, 'I have to keep going. I have to keep listening to the doctors. I have to keep taking my medicine, and eventually I am going to get out of it.' And despite all the odds, he did it."  That mindset — paired with his multidisciplinary care team working together — helped transform what could have been an ending into an extraordinary comeback.

The post Against extraordinary odds: A life saved more than once appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.

When Ruby Norland of Las Vegas decided to donate a kidney to her 29-year-old son, Ramiro Alvarado, she assumed determination and love would be enough. But after a series of evaluations at another transplant center, Ruby heard the word she feared most: no. 

"I cried out of anger and frustration," she recalls. "I felt devastated and helpless." 

Even though Ruby was a match, she was told her case was too complex. She had a small kidney stone and unusual anatomy. Instead of one artery, the right kidney had two, with the main artery branching very close to the aorta. Although her left kidney was not complex, Ruby was told the risks were too great to leave her with a single kidney that had a stone. 

That's when Ruby was referred to Mayo Clinic. 

Watch: Mother refuses to give up on son and finds a way forward

Journalists: Broadcast-quality video (2:43) is in the downloads at the end of this post. Please courtesy: "Mayo Clinic News Network." Read the script.

The path forward to donation

Ramiro had been on dialysis for eight months, three to four hours a day. For him, it was physically and emotionally challenging. "When my mom first offered to donate her kidney, I was stunned. I could never have asked anyone to do something so profound for me. She decided almost instantly, without a second thought," says Ramiro. "Donating an organ is not just a medical act. It is an act of love." 

During her first call, Ruby remembers the coordinator pausing before responding, not to say no, but to say that Mayo wanted to take a closer look. The Mayo Clinic team reassured her that their technology and surgeons were well equipped to handle complex cases like hers, offering hope instead of focusing on obstacles to donation. 

Experience meets complexity 

The transplant team evaluated her kidney stone risk, studied her anatomy in detail and worked through what donation would mean for her long-term health. The outcome was one other centers hadn't reached: Ruby was approved to donate her left kidney, while keeping the kidney with complex anatomy and the small stone, along with a long-term plan to reduce future risk. Mayo Clinic Transplant Center physicians have studied predictors of future kidney stones and have helped develop donor guidelines.   

"My test results didn't show a high risk of recurring kidney stones, and I felt confident about keeping my right kidney," says Ruby. When Ruby received the call that she was approved, she cried again, but this time out of relief. "When I told my son, he didn't believe me at first," she says. "Then it sank in, and we just held each other."   

The transplant itself was a success. "The testing was thorough, and the team was honest about the risks," Ruby says. "That made me feel prepared, not afraid."  

"It is our responsibility to not only identify but also comprehensively understand risks for potential donors, ensuring that decisions are guided by the expertise of our clinical team as well as input from the donor. Often, complex donor anatomy leads to denial at other centers. However, our approach at Mayo Clinic allows us to assist many donors successfully," explains Dr. Carrie Jadlowiec, medical director of the Living Donor Program at Mayo Clinic in Arizona.  

"My care team never minimized my risks," Ruby says. "They just refused to stop at no." 

Ruby says the moment that stays with her most is waking up after surgery and hearing that her son's new kidney was already working.  

Her recovery was smooth, and today she's back to hiking, practicing hot yoga and strength training and looking forward to her first Mother’s Day after the transplant.  

For Ramiro, having more energy, freedom and a renewed sense of gratitude for everyday moments that once felt out of reach drives his days. "I am not just surviving anymore. I am living again," he says. "There was a time when I avoided looking too far into the future because it felt like a privilege I could not count on. Now, I find myself making plans and looking forward to what comes next." 

For Ruby and her son, the transplant is no longer the center of the story; it's the turning point. What remains is many more Mother’s Days in their future together. And for Ramiro, every day reminds him of the incredible gift his mom gave him. 

Becoming an organ donor

Living kidney donation is available at all Mayo Clinic sites, where multidisciplinary teams prioritize patient needs, even in complex cases. Ruby's story is just one example of what's possible, thanks to the Transplant Center's support from Mayo Clinic's depth of expertise. This collaboration enables Mayo Clinic to care for patients facing extraordinary challenges while advancing transplant medicine. 

Learn more about Living Kidney Donation at Mayo Clinic. 

Related posts:

• How innovation is shaping the future of transplant care (VIDEO)
• Transplant Center at Mayo Clinic in Arizona sets a five-year national record for solid organ transplants (VIDEO)

The post Mother refuses to give up on son and finds a way forward (VIDEO) appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.

For patients with type 1 diabetes and end-stage kidney disease, a simultaneous kidney-pancreas transplant eliminates the need for dialysis and insulin injections by restoring insulin production and curing diabetes. Some people with type 2 diabetes may also be eligible.

For nearly four decades, 49-year-old Nakia Odom of Phoenix lived with type 1 diabetes, a disease that slowly took more than his health. It took his independence, his mobility and the tap dancing that once defined him.

Nakia was taught tap dancing by his grandmother, and it became an early passion. He even got to dance with tap legend Savion Glover at the Apollo Theater in New York. But a diabetes diagnosis at age 13 forced him to shift his focus from the stage to his health.

"Diabetes was livable at first," Nakia says. "But as I got older, it took more and more." As he approached his mid-20s, his health began to deteriorate. He had to give up tap dancing and eventually, playing football and basketball.

Diabetes to kidney failure

By his mid‑40s, diabetes-related complications had led to kidney failure. Nakia began dialysis at age 46, endured multiple surgeries, lost a toe to infection and developed sepsis, leaving him unable to walk or bear weight on his feet for months.

Nakia leaned into his faith. He also began to explore kidney-pancreas transplantation — but his case was too complex for most transplant centers.

That changed when he was referred to Mayo Clinic in Arizona, where transplant teams specialize in caring for patients others may turn away. Mayo Clinic is a leader in kidney–pancreas transplantation, with outcomes that meet and often exceed national averages. The team is also advancing the field through innovations such as robotic-assisted transplants, using minimally invasive techniques to support complex procedures.

Watch: Kidney-Pancreas transplant restores life without diabetes, the Nakia Odom story

Journalists: Broadcast-quality video (2:21) is in the downloads at the end of this post. Please courtesy: "Mayo Clinic News Network." Read the script.

Last spring, Nakia received a simultaneous kidney–pancreas transplant. "The first thing I noticed when I woke up was that the brain fog was gone," he says. "I wasn't in pain. And every day since, it's gotten better."

Now, one year post‑transplant, Nakia no longer needs insulin or dialysis. He's active again and has returned to tap dancing for the first time since 2001.

"My goal was always to dance again," Nakia says. "Dancing is how I connect with God."

Organ donors

His story reflects both the promise and the urgency of organ donation. More than 90,000 people in the U.S. are waiting for a kidney transplant, and around 2,500 are on the list for kidney–pancreas transplants. For many, the wait can stretch three to five years or longer. 

Nakia is deeply aware of the gift he received. "I pray for the donor's family every day," he says. "Their loss gave me my life back. Without their sacrifice, I might not be here today."

Now, the sound of Nakia's second chance is the rhythm of his tap shoes touching the floor once again — showing how his transplant didn't just restore his health; it gave him back something he deeply loved. 

"This is the best thing that's ever happened in my life," he says.

Related posts:

• Mayo Clinic Transplant performs record 2,065 organ transplants in 2025
• Robotic kidney transplant, when innovation meets family (VIDEO)
• How innovation is shaping the future of transplant care (VIDEO)
• Mayo Clinic Minute: What to expect as a living kidney donor

The post Kidney-pancreas transplant gives tap dancer new life without diabetes (VIDEO) appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.

Mayo Clinic is using new technology to help with diabetes-related kidney failure.

About 40 million people in the U.S. are living with diabetes. Most are able to manage the condition with medication and lifestyle changes.

But in some cases, diabetes, type 1 or type 2, can lead to more serious problems, including chronic kidney disease, even kidney failure, leaving patients with only one option – a pancreas-kidney transplant.

The transplant has been performed for decades. Now, surgeons at Mayo Clinic are performing the transplant robotically. 

Steve Canzoneri shares his life-changing story of becoming Mayo's first patient to undergo a robotic pancreas-kidney transplant.

Watch: Mayo Clinic announces first robotic pancreas-kidney transplant

Journalists: Broadcast-quality video (2:45) is in the downloads at the end of this post. Please courtesy: "Mayo Clinic News Network." Read the script.

Steve has battled diabetes most of his life. Despite treatment, diabetes still took a toll on his body and over time led to kidney failure.

"I've had some major setbacks with diabetic complications and other things like that," says Steve.

Diabetes is a disease where the body cannot properly control blood sugar levels. In most cases, the pancreas doesn't make enough insulin or the body can't use it effectively. This can damage organs, especially the kidneys, leaving some patients like Steve in need of a pancreas-kidney transplant.

Steve got the transplant he needed at Mayo Clinic in Arizona. He also became Mayo's first patient to undergo the procedure robotically.

"Traditionally, this operation involves a very big incision, but with the minimally invasive approach, we're able to offer patients a smaller incision," says transplant surgeon Michelle Nguyen, M.D. "That potentially allows the patient to recover faster, have less pain, have less risk of wound complications and just be able to return to their normal life more quickly."

For the transplant, two surgeons sit at consoles guiding the robot with hand controls. The robot does not replace the surgeon – it enhances precision, accuracy and control. 

"The robot is actually just a tool that we use in the operating room that improves our magnifications, allows us to do a minimally invasive approach," says transplant surgeon Nitin Katariya, M.D. "We are in control the whole time."

Goal of transplant

The transplant is more than just a treatment.

"For many of these patients on insulin, we can try to cure both issues: the kidney disease and what may have caused their kidney disease in the first place, their diabetes. And so we look at kidney-pancreas transplant together as a way to attack both problems and solve both problems," adds Dr. Katariya.

Steve's dad noticed an improvement right away.

"He said to me that I finally sound like his son again," says Steve.

Steve was discharged less than a week after his transplant. 

"He’s recovering very smoothly. He is done with dialysis, his kidney function is pretty much normal now, he is off insulin," says Dr. Nguyen.

For Steve, that means a future free of limitations.

"To be able to live, and travel again, be able to live life, and having that renewed spirit of being able to just do whatever I want–whenever I want–and not be tied down somewhere," says Steve.

Not everyone is a candidate for the robotic pancreas-kidney transplant. Doctors recommend talking to your healthcare team to determine what options are best for you.

Related stories:

• Mayo Clinic surgeons perform first robotic-assisted kidney transplant in Minnesota
• How a pancreas transplant can cure diabetes
• Mayo Clinic Minute: Reasons to be a living kidney donor
• From donation to Kilimanjaro: Living kidney donor defies limits (VIDEO)

The post Mayo Clinic announces first robotic pancreas-kidney transplant (VIDEO) appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.

What began as a routine check for swelling quickly turned Randy Ramey's life upside down. When pneumonia and swelling were diagnosed as stage 4 cirrhosis of the liver, Randy, of Denton, Texas, struggled to understand how it was all connected. 

A series of visits with local specialists revealed a fatty liver disease called metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis, or MASH. For Randy, the diagnosis set off a cascade of life-or-death decisions that led his wife and him to Mayo Clinic, where he underwent a complex series of three lifesaving procedures, including a double coronary artery bypass surgery, liver transplant and, just months later, a kidney transplant. They found themselves navigating one health obstacle after another.

Randy is sharing his story to raise awareness during Donate Life Month.

Watch: 3 lifesaving surgeries and a second chance

Journalists: Broadcast-quality video (1:47) is available for download at the end of this post. Please courtesy: "Mayo Clinic News Network." Read the script.

"I was shocked. I mean, we didn't see that coming at all. It's right out of left field. You know, at that point, I wasn't physically sick. I was just swollen," says Randy.

When pneumonia and swelling became a diagnosis of stage 4 cirrhosis. Randy came to Mayo Clinic for a liver transplant evaluation. What doctors found made his situation far more urgent and far more complex.

"I went into the lab for a chemical stress test, but that's where they confirmed the two blockages. So what they ended up deciding, we're going to do two surgeries in one day. We're going to do your heart surgery — your double bypass — and we're going to do the liver. The worst I felt was the day before I got transplanted. The next morning when I woke up and had to do the walk, I still felt better than I did before the surgery," he says.

From the hospital window, Randy's wife, Elise, watched the mountains outside and saw their journey ahead — every peak, every valley — another procedure, another decision, another climb.

"We're going to have to climb every one of those mountain ranges," Elise says as she recalls their journey. "We're going to have to ascend and descend and ascend and descend every one of those mountain ranges."

"I'm getting rebuilt from the ground up," Randy says. "My kidney took off running, and it hasn't stopped. I don't know how you pay somebody for saving your life. I get emotional because you can't put it in words, but I've tried."

And with smiles as big as Texas, Randy and Elise are home after 27 weeks in Arizona. 

Related stories:

• From donation to Kilimanjaro: Living kidney donor defies limits (VIDEO)

The post 3 lifesaving surgeries and a second chance (VIDEO)  appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.

An Arizona woman who is a Mayo Clinic retiree, along with several other fellow kidney donors, is proving that donating a kidney doesn't limit a person. In fact, donors can accomplish amazing feats, like climbing Africa's highest mountain. 

Watch: From donation to Kilimanjaro: Living kidney donor defies limits

Journalists: Broadcast-quality video (2:07) is in the downloads at the end of this post. Please courtesy: "Mayo Clinic News Network." Read the script.

"My life has changed a lot. I am probably healthier now than I've ever been in my entire life — partly because of the climb that I'm doing, climbing Mount Kilimanjaro with kidney donor athletes and 15 kidney donors all climbing," says Bethany Krom. "We will summit on World Kidney Day to show the world that those of us with one kidney can do anything that those with two kidneys can."

"This expedition to Mount Kilimanjaro is just an example of how donating a kidney does not need to limit you in any way," says Dr. Mikel Prieto, a Mayo Clinic transplant surgeon.

"Being able to donate to someone and change their lives is something that's really amazing and makes me feel good every day," Bethany says. "And knowing what a difference it made on my life inspires me to help others to think about doing the same thing."

Bethany donated her kidney as part of the paired exchange program. It's an option for donors and intended recipients who aren't a match for transplant. In paired exchange donation, two or more organ-recipient pairs trade donors so that each recipient gets an organ that is compatible.

"Thanks to paired exchange, as long as you have a donor — it doesn't matter what blood group, doesn't matter what age or anything — if they pass the test to be a donor, but they are not a good match for you, we can use that kidney for somebody else," says Dr. Prieto.

"You can donate totally independent of when your person is and just name your person — actually, five people you can name — and whoever needs it first will get it," Bethany says.

"Basically, what we need is a healthy person — somebody that is not putting themselves at risk for donating their kidney," Dr. Prieto says.

"I knew that the person I was donating for was a grandpa. And as it turns out, the person I donated to is a grandfather as well. So I'm a grandma who gave so two grandpas will be able to watch their grandchildren grow up. That, for me, is very special," Bethany says.

"Donating a kidney is basically changing somebody's life: 'I'm going to help you. I'm going to change your life for the better,'" says Dr. Prieto.

And Bethany says, in her case, it's not just the recipient's life that was changed.

"For me, donation enhanced my life because I am more careful about how I take care of my body. And then I am exercising and eating good food," she says. "So I am healthier and doing all the things I did before and more, like climbing mountains."

The post From donation to Kilimanjaro: Living kidney donor defies limits (VIDEO) appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.

Both men are alive today thanks to an extremely rare and complex surgery – a triple-organ transplant, including a heart, liver and kidney simultaneously.

Watch: Rare transplant turns strangers into friends

Journalists: Broadcast-quality video (1:52) is in the downloads at the end of this post. Please courtesy: "Mayo Clinic News Network." Read the script.

Tony's story

Tony had always considered himself a healthy guy. You'd often find him out on the basketball court, playing with family and friends or just shooting hoops by himself.

Then, at 50 years old, Tony had to stop playing basketball. He was diagnosed with congestive heart failure. Over the next decade, Tony underwent one procedure after another. Still, his health continued to decline.

Doctors told Tony there was only one option left – a triple-organ transplant, including a heart, liver and kidney. The transplant is so rare and complex that it is performed at only a limited number of hospitals.

Tony turned to Mayo Clinic in Arizona, where he found hope and a friend who would become his inspiration.

Hope comes calling

In 2025, Tony was admitted to Mayo Clinic. On the day of his triple-organ transplant, just hours before his surgery, Tony got an unexpected phone call.

"You're going to be just fine. You've got the best doctors and nurses," said Doyle, who was speaking from firsthand experience. Doyle is Arizona's first patient to undergo a triple-organ transplant, including a heart, liver and kidney.

Doyle called Tony to offer support and encouragement.

"You're going to feel a hundred percent better than you do today. I hurt, but I could tell a difference immediately," said Doyle, calling from his home in Pauls Valley, Oklahoma. In 2022, Doyle traveled with his wife Billie to Arizona to undergo the milestone triple-organ transplant.

The phone call was just what Tony needed to hear.

"It helped a lot talking to somebody who has gone through what I was going through," says Tony. "Every day I thought if Doyle did it, I can too. He was my inspiration."

Billie also spoke with Carrie, Tony's wife, to share her insight on being a caregiver. "She told me I could call her 24 hours a day," says Carrie. "I called her quite a bit. It was so helpful to speak with someone who had already been through this."

The families stayed in close contact throughout Tony's transplant journey.

Even though the two men had never met, Doyle says he didn't think twice about reaching out to Tony.

"Calling Tony was the least I could do to help Tony to understand what he's going to do and what he's got to do," says Doyle.

Mayo Clinic – a leader in triple-organ transplantation

Mayo Clinic also performs triple-organ transplants in Rochester, Minnesota.

As of February 2026, Mayo Clinic has performed 13 triple-organ transplants, according to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network.

In 2024, Mayo Clinic in Rochester performed a highly complex and rare triple transplant, including a heart, lungs and kidney.

The patient, Mike Loven, had battled serious health problems since childhood. He had three open-heart surgeries by the time he reached his teens. Mike lives in Coon Rapids, Minnesota with his wife and two daughters.

Like Tony and Doyle, doctors told Mike a triple-organ transplant was his only chance for survival.

The triple transplant was a success. "I'm feeling better than I have in years," says Mike. "I'm walking up to two miles on the treadmill. I'm back to working. I feel great."

Strangers no more

It's been nine months since Tony's triple-organ transplant. Doctors still closely monitor his progress, but he's back at home, enjoying time with family and friends.

Tony is even slowly making his way back to the basketball court.

Doyle and Billie made a special trip Arizona to meet their new friends in person.

"We share such a special bond," says Billie. "I know we'll be friends forever."

Though Mike has not met Tony and Doyle, the three begin each new day the same way – with deep gratitude for the gift of life.

"I hear my heart beat everyday and remember my donor, I'm so grateful. Thank you to my donor and donor family," says Tony. "Every day is a miracle day."

Related stories:

• Harnessing the power of innovation and a patient's will to survive
• A rare cancer. A rare weapon. Curtis Jackson's inspiring story of survival
• Breathing easy thanks to the gift of life and a new lung transplant program at Mayo Clinic in Arizona
• Breaking the silence: Total larynx transplant on a patient with active cancer
• Bridging the transplant gap for indigenous healthcare

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A 27-year-old Arizona man now has new lungs and a wife after holding an impromptu wedding ceremony in a Mayo Clinic hospital ICU room — just days before undergoing double-lung transplant surgery.

Watch: New lungs, new wife for Mayo Clinic transplant patient

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"I had always noticed that, despite being an athlete for my entire life, I never really had the same cardio endurance as my peers. And then later on in my life, it would come to light that I actually had this disease called PPFE, or pleuroparenchymal fibroelastosis, a rare form of lung disease," says Mateo Franco, who lives in Mesa, Arizona.

"By July of 2025, I had to go back into Mayo Clinic in Phoenix because my breathing and my shortness of breath, my fatigue were at an all-time high. That's when they decided that lung transplant was the only viable route," he says. "They put me on ECMO in Phoenix. I got flown on a private medical jet to Rochester."

Dr. Sahar Saddoughi is a lung transplant surgeon at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. She performed Mateo's double-lung transplant.

"A patient on ECMO support is in critical condition. For Mateo, that was keeping him alive, and his only way to get disconnected from the ECMO machine would be to undergo lung transplantation," says Dr. Saddoughi.

Mateo's transplant surgery would be even more challenging because he had pectus excavatum, a condition in which the breastbone is sunken into the chest.

"I had a surgery to correct that in 2023, and they put two metal bars into my chest to correct the shape of my rib cage in my chest wall. That was one big reason why other hospitals had denied me for the lung transplant because it was too complex to have to deal with those bars, plus putting in new lungs," Mateo says. "I really don't think another hospital could have done what Mayo Clinic did."

"That's the beauty of Mayo Clinic. We take on these types of challenging cases, knowing there is a team of experts to care for these patients," says Dr. Saddoughi. "Obviously, there were certain intricacies of the case that made his case particularly difficult. First, he was very sick and inpatient out in Arizona. Two, he had multiple previous surgeries on his chest and right lung, which makes lung transplant surgery more challenging. And then, three, was his chest deformity and reconstruction of this post-lung transplant to allow enough space for his heart, especially the right ventricle." 

Mateo's college sweetheart, Isabella, was at his side in the ICU at the hospital as he waited for donor lungs to become available. A marriage proposal, followed by a wedding at Mayo, soon became a reality.

"We had been together for five-plus years. So, you know, staring down the barrel of a very serious surgery, we figured we wanted to go through that as husband and wife," Mateo says. "The night nurses came in early for their shifts, and they decorated this atrium for us as a little impromptu wedding chapel. They made these cute little rings out of beads. It's pretty much like we eloped. You know, not quite a chapel in Vegas, but it's the next best thing. We got married on July 26, and the transplant happened on July 31."

Dr. Saddoughi says the complexity of Mateo's case necessitated the involvement of a multidisciplinary team, both in an out of the operating room, including the Transplant team, Thoracic Surgery, Plastic Surgery, and Vascular Surgery.  

"We were in the operating room at least eight times during a two-week period," says Dr. Saddoughi. "This is the magic, I would say, of Mayo Clinic, truly in this case, because it's beyond one surgeon or one part of a team. It really involved a huge multidisciplinary team and also the support from Mayo Clinic in Arizona to safely get him here and to care for Mateo postoperatively, as well." 

"Everyone at Mayo Clinic, the care I got was just unparalleled. It was amazing. I know that the job is not easy, but they make it seem easy. They're so good at what they do," Mateo says.

"He had fortitude. He had the fight in him to get through all of this, and that's a big part of Mateo's success," says Dr. Saddoughi.

Three months after his double-lung transplant, Mateo left the care of Mayo Clinic in Rochester as a newlywed and returned home, where he continues to receive follow-up care at Mayo Clinic in Arizona.

"For the first couple weeks, I would keep getting surprised by how deep I was able to breathe. Being able to do the dishes without getting tired, do the laundry — it's just little things, and it just feels incredible," Mateo says. "I would like to thank the donor and the donor's family. They gave me another chance at life, and that's something that I'll forever be grateful for."

"To know that he has that bright future that we wanted for him — that the plan that we tried to execute worked out. I mean, what better joy?" says Dr. Saddoughi.

"Dr. Saddoughi is a complete lifesaver, the way she, you know, took a chance on something that other hospitals, other doctors, said, 'No, we can't do this.' She said, 'Yeah, watch me.' And she nailed it. She knocked it out of the park," Mateo says.

And he's looking forward to enjoying his new life as a married man.

"Now that I can really function, the world's our oyster. We can do anything," Mateo says.

The post New lungs, new wife for Mayo Clinic transplant patient (VIDEO) appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.

Randy McKnight makes award-winning barbecue, runs marathons and owns a small business. He puts his heart into everything he does — just not the heart he had when he was born.

Randy was among the first 10 heart transplant recipients at Mayo Clinic in Florida, a program that is now marking its 25^th anniversary.

Watch: 'Live for today': Looking at life nearly 25 years after a heart transplant

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"It was in the summer of 1998," Randy says. "We were having a lot of fires in Jacksonville along I-95, and (I was) having a hard time breathing."

Randy was 35 years old when his care team in Jacksonville, Florida, discovered he had an enlarged heart.

"I was in full-blown heart failure with fluid in my lungs," Randy says. "(My doctor) basically said, 'You need a heart transplant.' I couldn't believe it."

Randy was placed on the transplant list in Rochester, Minnesota, and spent almost three years traveling back and forth for appointments, waiting for a heart.

"My son must have been 8 or 9, and I knew that I had to survive to help raise him and support him," Randy says.

Then, in 2001, Mayo Clinic started a heart transplant program in Jacksonville, which gave Randy a chance to be closer to home.

"I met Dr. Yip when the program first started, and from day one, he and I have connected," Randy says. "I've always felt like I've had a personal connection with the team here, and it just made the whole process so much easier."

After listing and waiting several more months, the day finally came.

"I had my heart transplant on May 27, 2002," Randy says.

"You have someone who is literally on death's doorstep to be able to live a full, healthy life, back to things that they want to do, going back to work, raising their children, going to graduations, going to weddings, raising their grandchildren. That is satisfying," says Dr. Daniel Yip, a Mayo Clinic cardiologist who helped start the heart transplant program in Florida.

Over the last quarter century, Dr. Yip has seen progress in heart transplantation — from advances in medications to new options for patients with the greatest need.

"Being able to expand the donor pool using organs that, in the past, we would say maybe we shouldn't think about using them, but knowing with time, with research, with innovation, with technology, to be able to use these organs," Dr. Yip says. "And now we're able to go a lot farther, even across the country, to be able to get the right heart for a patient. I think that's the biggest thing — to be able to serve patients who need our help."

According to the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), nearly 4,000 people in the U.S. are waiting for a heart transplant.

Randy is grateful for the years he's been given, and he's made it his mission to help others.

"My quality of life before transplant — being sick, being limited — was really hard because I'm go, go all the time," Randy says. "Just learn to live each day for today, live every day for today and appreciate life."

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