Man gets second chance at life with rare triple-organ transplant
LONG ISLAND (WABC) -- Doctors at North Shore University hospital performed a rare three-organ transplant procedure all in one.
Eyewitness News spoke to the 47-year-old heart, liver and kidney transplant recipient about the 14-hour life-saving procedure.
"I do believe that God was working with all these people around me," said triple-transplant recipient Sergio Arias Cestoni.
Cestoni considers it a miracle.
His doctors at the Northwell Transplant Institute call it a profound moment in medicine.
Either way, 47-year-old Cestoni of Queens is feeling better than ever with his new liver, kidney and heart.
"10 years, I didn't feel my heart in that way," Cestoni said.
The three new organs were all a match from the same donor.
The incredibly rare type of surgery has been performed fewer than 80 times in the last two decades in the country.
Cestoni had been waiting in North Shore University hospital for 3 months, hoping for a donor.
Then he got the news he would have a chance to live.
"It was a big moment. I didn't know if I have to cry. If I have to smile. I don't know," Cestoni said.
One organ after another followed: first the heart, then the liver and then the kidney over 14 hours of surgery.
"A complex endeavor for a hospital to carry out it's really the epitome of multi-disciplinary care," said Dr. Nabil Dagher, Northwell Transplant Institute Director.
10 years ago, no hospital on Long Island was performing a heart transplant or a liver transplant. The pace of this procedure for Northwell has been transformative.
"It's definitely not another day in the office, not a regular day. Moments like this are very rewarding to the team," said Kidney Transplant Surgeon Dr. Ahmel Fahmy.
It's also a reminder of the importance of organ donation.
"I feel so proud to get all these organs, and try to honor my donor," Cestoni said.
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