Post by NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital

Born with only one kidney and diagnosed with a condition called IgA nephropathy that causes the kidney to slowly deteriorate, Mike Miranda knew the day would come when he might need a kidney transplant. When that day arrived, in August 2025, Mike was referred to Dr. Jason Hawksworth, who runs the robotic transplant program at #NYPColumbia. “Mike had just had a baby, and restoring him to health as quickly as possible was imperative,” said Dr. Hawksworth, “a minimally invasive robotic approach to his kidney transplant would enable that.” As one of seven siblings in a tightknit family, Mike had no shortage of potential living donors. Testing showed that his younger sister, Dr. Caroline Miranda, a neurologist at #NYPColumbia, was a perfect match. In December 2025, Dr. Miranda’s surgeon, Dr. Lloyd Ratner, Director of Renal and Pancreatic Transplantation at #NYPColumbia, and Dr. Hawksworth performed the first simultaneous, fully robotic living donor kidney removal and transplant at NewYork-Presbyterian on the Miranda siblings. Although it marked a major milestone, the procedure was uneventful. “It takes years of putting together the right teams and the right people to make it go uneventfully,” said Dr. Ratner, who also performed the world’s first minimally invasive living kidney donor operation 31 years ago. Dr. Miranda went home two days post-surgery and returned to work after four weeks of recovery. “I fell in love with medicine all over again,” she said. “I have such deep admiration for the entire team behind this process.” Mike headed home after four days in the hospital, and by seven weeks post-surgery, he had returned to 60 percent kidney function—even with just one kidney. Just a couple weeks after his daughter’s six-month birthday, he was able to lift her again. “The whole transplant team has been great—everyone from my nephrologists to the people at the front desk. And I’m forever grateful to my sister for giving me this second chance at life.” This #DonateLifeMonth, join us in celebrating the power of living organ donation, and click to learn more about the Miranda siblings’ transplant story: https://nyphosp.co/4cIjQLV Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Weill Cornell Medicine

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