UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals

05/23/2026

Please congratulate Miller — she’s doing great after fetal treatments before birth and open-heart surgery as an infant!
When Miller’s mom, Aubrey, was pregnant, doctors considered her high risk due to her own heart issues, and she received extra monitoring in her hometown near Sacramento. In Aubrey’s second trimester of pregnancy, she learned her baby had a third-degree heart block and might need a pacemaker after birth. Aubrey traveled to UCSF for care two days later and received IVIG (intravenous immunoglobulin) infusions. She was able to return home the next day and continue monitoring with both her local doctor and her UCSF team until labor began three months later.
In October 2024, Miller was born at our hospital, and at five months old, she returned to have heart surgery with Dr. V. Mohan Reddy, who repaired six holes in her heart and implanted a pacemaker. While Miller spent two weeks in the hospital recovering from surgery, doctors discovered Aubrey had a previously unknown autoimmune disease that likely caused Miller’s heart block.
Miller is now a happy 19-month-old! She loves climbing on anything she can, swinging, being sung to, and is a “little fish” in the water, her mom says. She also adores her older brother and recently graduated from her feeding tube!

05/20/2026

60+ patients and their families gathered at Camp Arroyo in Livermore for a joyful reunion with their former care teams at our Pediatric Rehab Reunion!
The day was filled with fun activities, including face painting, photo booth pictures, mini horses, group drumming and dancing — and families bonded by telling stories about the care they received at our hospital!

05/14/2026

Please help us cheer on Jade — she’s doing great more than two years after a bone marrow transplant!
At age 4, Jade began experiencing unusual bruising, and her pediatrician in Discovery Bay ordered bloodwork, which showed low platelets and hemoglobin. She tested negative for cancer, but doctors later discovered she had severe aplastic anemia, a rare but serious blood disorder.
Fortunately, Jade’s older sister, Ava, was a full match to be the donor for her bone marrow transplant! Jade spent several weeks in our hospital and then Family House San Francisco recovering! Ava also bounced back perfectly.
During her recovery, Jade missed most of her team’s softball season but was happy to play in the final game! She is now in the first grade and loves dancing, baking, playing with friends, swimming and riding her bike!

05/06/2026

Happy to all the nurses who care for our pediatric patients with exceptional skill and compassion every day of the year!

05/04/2026

🎉 Amazing news: We've received a $2.5 million donation to support sickle cell disease care and research at our hospitals! This generous gift from the Love family will support young people transitioning to adult care and sickle cell research, as well as our new Oakland hospital building.
Thank you, Dr. Ted W. Love and Joyce Y. Love! ❤️
➡️

A $2.5 million gift by Ted W. Love and Joyce Y. Love to UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals will expand care for patients with sickle cell disease and support the building of new facilities at the campus.

05/01/2026

Please send your best wishes to Kasen! He’s recovering well after a liver transplant last October, with his father, Huangying, as his living donor.

While Kasen was still in the womb, doctors in the South Bay were unable to find his gallbladder on an ultrasound. The family came to UCSF for further testing, where doctors explained Kasen might have biliary atresia, a rare, life-threatening liver disease in children that can be associated with a missing gallbladder.

Kasen was born on New Year's Eve 2024 in San Jose and came quickly to UCSF for specialized care. He spent about two months in our hospital, and our team confirmed he had biliary atresia. Kasen had an initial surgery and then received part of his father’s liver last October when he was strong enough.

Recovery was slow at first, but Kasen has been making great progress! Huangying is also doing great and was back to playing badminton within a couple of months of surgery!
As a family, they love spending time outdoors together, going for walks on local trails and at the park. They recently even hiked Mission Peak in Fremont!

04/24/2026

A big thank you to the San Francisco Giants for hosting us on City Connect Tuesday! ⚾

We’re especially proud that our Associate Director of Special Events, Heather Hoover, served as the game’s honorary captain. The Giants went on to defeat the Dodgers 3-1! 🎉

04/23/2026

🎉 Exciting news: Alameda County families with children in our Oakland intensive care unit and NICU will now have access to affordable apartments in Oakland, so they can benefit from stable housing near their kids! The new Oakland Housing Authority program provides 50 apartments for our patient families at a rent of $250/month for up to five years, with $1.37 million in Alameda Alliance for Health funding.

More about this incredible program ➡️ https://ucsfh.org/4tleH2j

04/21/2026

Our teen patients danced the night away at the hospital prom! This special event lets teens with serious illness experience the magic of prom in a safe, comfortable environment.
Thank you to our Child Life teams in Oakland and San Francisco and all the volunteers, staff and donors who brought joy to our patients this year!

04/21/2026

Please help us wish a fur-tastic Happy Birthday to our beloved facility dog Tulip, who just turned 5! 🐶 🥳

Tulip celebrated her special day surrounded by patients and families in the playroom. The festivities included Polaroid photos with the birthday girl, making Shrinky D***s, fun tattoos, and plenty of arts and crafts.

The celebration all came together as everyone gathered to sing Happy Birthday while Tulip “blew out” her cake. 🎂

04/18/2026

Please congratulate Kaden! He’s thriving after our Oakland trauma team saved his life almost six years ago, following a tractor accident.

Kaden was just four years old when a tractor ran him over while he vacationed with his family in Ukiah. He suffered multiple life-threatening injuries, including a broken femur, two broken arms, a fractured pelvis and scapula, a lacerated liver, bruised lungs and severe internal bleeding from his spleen.

A local hospital in Ukiah removed Kaden’s spleen in an emergency surgery, and then he came by helicopter to our Oakland hospital’s pediatric trauma center, which is one of only seven trauma centers for kids in California with a Level 1 designation.

Our team performed three additional surgeries and cared for Kaden for five more days before Dr. Aaron Jensen was able to share the news the family had been waiting for: They were confident Kaden would pull through.

“It was the best feeling in the world,” his dad, Karl, says.

What followed was a long and challenging road to recovery. Kaden spent nearly two weeks in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and continued his hospitalization for several more weeks, learning to walk and eat again with our inpatient rehabilitation team.

In August 2019, Kaden returned home to his community in Pullman, Wash., where he experienced an unforgettable welcome complete with a fire truck es**rt from the local fire department.

Today, Kaden is a happy and active fourth grader who loves school and sports, especially baseball and soccer! He also enjoys cheering on his favorite teams, including the Seattle Seahawks and Seattle Mariners!