Amy and Josh Porter were looking for the best pediatric heart surgery program to give their son the best chance at a regular childhood. Then they learned that two of them were working together in a new collaboration. When Mitchell Porter was born, he was diagnosed with heart defects that typi­cally [...]

When she learned that a liver transplant could save her mom's life, April Wilson didn't hesitate to stop smoking and say yes to being a living donor. April Wilson smoked for 25 years and tried many times to quit, but nothing seemed to work. "I tried everything," April says. "I used every [...]

George Caceres came to Mayo Clinic with advanced liver disease and stayed for more than five months, much of it during COVID-19 restrictions. His care team made him feel safe and cared for. George Caceres' smile is contagious. Just ask his Mayo Clinic care team, who came to know him well [...]

When Eric Berg's seizures increased to the point they took over his life despite medications to control them, he sought help from Mayo Clinic. A new treatment gave him hope and a chance to live his life again. Since he was a child, Eric Berg, has had seizures due to epilepsy. This [...]

Amy Infanger had a rare kidney disease and a difficult path to transplant. A transplant chain involving 16 people across the country got her the match she needed and the chance to grow old with her family. Nearly 100,000 Americans are on a waiting list to receive a kidney transplant. For one Minnesota [...]

Sara Groves was seriously injured in a hit-and-run accident that changed her life. Among other things, the accident left her with paralysis in her right arm. She credits her medical team at Mayo Clinic in Arizona for helping her move forward and for the courage to pick up her guitar again. Arizona [...]

Gayle Wilkerson has lived for 10 years with a left ventricular assist device, a mechanical pump that helps a damaged heart pump blood. The milestone is one not many patients reach. Gayle Wilkerson doesn't accept hero status. Her care team at Mayo Clinic disagrees. At age 84, Gayle, holds the honor of [...]

A cavernous malformation threatened to upend Allison Nilsen's dance career. Surgery was an option, but at what cost? Her team at Mayo created a plan to monitor Allison's condition and let her pursue her dreams. At Mayo Clinic, patient care plans are not one-size-fits-all. Allison Nilsen's story is a prime example [...]

Ernie Hernandez was battling congestive heart failure when he learned his liver was failing, too. On Oct. 26, he found answers to both issues with the first combined heart and liver transplant in Arizona. Ernie Hernandez was used to the hot Arizona sun. He was born and raised in Phoenix and [...]

The Wilson brothers' connection goes deeper than the average siblings. They both were in serious need of a heart transplant. The brothers now have new hearts, a new perspective on life, and a new purpose. On the surface, John and Mark Wilson are model brothers. Growing up, the two would playfully [...]

Faced with a condition that has no cure and few treatment options, Chris Ryals turned to Mayo Clinic in Florida for an answer. An innovative transplant essentially reversed his symptoms and gave him hope. As a career military man, Chris Ryals was used to being physically active. The Air Force master [...]

Cardiomyopathy is a medical term for a number of genetic and nongenetic diseases involving the heart muscle that adversely affect the heart's mechanical pumping function and its electrical system. It can occur in people of all ages, races or genders, and it is a frequent cause of sudden cardiac arrest [...]

When Yiftah Geva was diagnosed with a heart condition several years ago, he never expected his journey to treatment would take him 6,000 miles away from home during the COVID-19 pandemic. It was almost six years ago when Yiftah Geva began taking medication to stabilize his blood pressure. Doctors wanted to [...]

Andrew Austin urged his mom to come to Mayo Clinic, where he works, for care for kidney disease. When he learned she needed a kidney transplant, he knew what he wanted to do. Jean Austin-Danner was in her 30s when she was diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease, an inherited condition [...]

Over five years, Erasmo Carlos Perdomo Maradiaga received six different diagnoses from doctors in Honduras. The 26-year-old father needed answers, and despite the COVID-19 pandemic, he realized a trip to the U.S. could be his only hope for a precise diagnosis. Excruciating back pain first brought Erasmo Carlos Perdomo Maradiaga to [...]

He was not the first person in his family to be diagnosed with pulmonary hypertension, so Pat Lacy knew the warning signs and took them seriously. And he was determined to find an answer. Pat Lacy had just landed in Utah for a business conference when he noticed he was having [...]

James Benjamin has found a reason to be grateful in each step of his unexpected path to Mayo Clinic and a better option to recover from surgery for kidney cancer. After talking with James Benjamin, you learn that he is a very grateful man. First off, James, of Lino Lakes, Minnesota, is [...]

This column spotlights the people you think about when you think about Mayo Clinic. They've answered questions, serious and silly, so you can know them better. You see them at bedsides. Behind desks. You may spot them walking down a hall or sprinting across a lobby, making every effort to look [...]

Matthew Horace, Mayo Clinic's chief security officer, shares his experience of growing up under the shadow of bias as a Black man in America, his career as a law enforcement officer, and his thoughts on what each person can do to improve race relations. Voices of Mayo is a series that [...]

Sheila Piper was diagnosed with early-stage lung cancer in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. She was able to safely receive the medical care she needed at Mayo Clinic thanks to measures in place to protect patients and staff. Sheila Piper considers herself blessed. She has a wonderful family that includes [...]

For years, Joey Del Toro has lived with medical conditions that have affected his abilities and appearance. But Joey hasn't let his health concerns define him. Instead, he's focused his energy on moving beyond them and excelling at the sports he loves.

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For four years, Mallory Owens lived in a world of pain. Constant, intense shoulder pain interfered with her work and disrupted her sleep. Mallory's search for a way out of the pain led her to a Mayo Clinic orthopedic surgeon who finally was able to offer the solution Mallory needed.

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For Cori Kirkpatrick, going back to the place where her husband received his medical training brought with it a well of emotions — excitement, nostalgia, anxiety. Mayo Clinic had always represented possibility and hope for her, but those sentiments took on more meaning when Cori returned to Mayo searching for a solution to her own illness.

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This look back to 1918 and how Mayo Clinic responded to the influenza pandemic is written by Matthew Dacy, director of Mayo Clinic Heritage Hall. Headlines tell the story. "New Disease Is In Rochester Now." This brief notice appeared in the Rochester Daily Post and Record on Sept. 21, 1918. Taking up [...]

Lynn Houston went from her role as a nurse manager at Mayo Clinic in Florida to the operating room aboard the USNS Comfort, stationed in New York City.

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