When Steve and Judy Mura moved to South Orange in 2017, they became friendly with their next-door neighbors, Michael and Miriam Sang. The couples chatted, spent time outside together with their children, and had joint barbecues. But over time, the Muras realized that their friend Michael Sang was no longer outside barbecuing, and that he was using a cane to walk. Concerned, Judy Mura asked Miriam Sang if he was okay. She was saddened to learn that he was far from it; Michael Sang had kidney failure caused by an aortic hematoma, a condition in which blood leaks through the aortic wall. He desperately needed a kidney transplant.
Sang and Mura underwent surgery in June of 2022 at the Renal and Pancreas Transplant Division at Cooperman Barnabas. Mura’s kidney was removed laparoscopically, through two small holes. A camera connected to a monitor, providing the surgeon with a clear view of the area, was placed in one hole; the second hole provided a space for the surgeon’s tools. Sang was then able to receive the kidney through traditional open surgery.
Kidney donations often come from family members, but friends, colleagues and even strangers volunteer in about equal numbers. “Kidney donations have extended beyond family members,” says Dr. Praveen Kandula, medical director of the Living Donor Institute at Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center. “More than half the donations [in the country] are from unrelated people, such as friends and acquaintances.”
The Mura's and Sang's share their story with NJ Monthly. Read it here.