UCSF And Stanford Perform Rare Double Lung And Heart Transplant After Four-Year Wait

Redding Restaurateur Vicente Castro Receives Rare heart And double lung transplant

USA: Vicente Castro, a 48-year-old Redding restaurant owner, underwent a combined heart and double lung transplantation at Stanford late last month after nearly four years on the transplant wait list. The procedure follows a months-long transfer from UCSF, where physicians had cared for him and ultimately determined Stanford offered the best path forward for the complex operation.

Castro is a familiar face in the local food scene, co-owning DJ’s Smashburger and having managed Red Robin for more than two decades. Family members say his health began to decline about eight years ago; doctors have struggled to pinpoint the cause but suspect an underlying genetic condition. He was placed under specialty care at UCSF four years ago before the March decision to move his case to Stanford.

On April 28 the family was notified that a local donor had been identified and the donor organs were procured, enabling the rare combined transplant. The surgery places Castro among a very small global cohort; the European Committee on Organ Transplants reports roughly 100 heart-and-double-lung operations occur worldwide each year. The International Society for heart and lung Transplantation cites a roughly 71 percent survival rate at three months after this procedure.

Physicians caution recovery will be intensive, with rehabilitation possibly requiring Castro to relearn basic functions such as swallowing and fine motor tasks. His family describes him as determined and hopeful as he begins the long road of post-transplant recovery, and they express deep gratitude to the donor and the teams at UCSF and Stanford.

Video originally published on 2026-05-06 19:58:32