UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals

06/07/2026

Please congratulate Lyla! She’s cancer-free after a month in our pediatric ICU, surgery, chemotherapy, radiation, two stem-cell transplants and immunotherapy — all to treat neuroblastoma!

In 2022 at just two years old, Lyla began experiencing abdominal pain, and a blood test from her local doctor revealed cancer. Lyla came to our Oakland hospital and met with oncologist, Dr. Natalie Wu. Unfortunately, she began experiencing severe bleeding during testing and received multiple transfusions. Lyla stayed in our Intensive Care Unit for a month on a ventilator. During that time, our team diagnosed her with high-risk stage 4 neuroblastoma and began chemo.

Lyla stayed in the hospital for eight weeks, later traveling to us from her hometown of Napa for treatment. After five rounds of chemo, Lyla had surgery to remove her adrenal gland and tumor. She then went through two back-to-back stem-cell transplants, radiation therapy and five sessions of immunotherapy. Lyla finished inpatient treatment in July 2023 and started a trial medication to prevent the cancer cells from coming back. She finished the (now standard) medication in July 2025 and got to ring the end-of-treatment bell!

Lyla is now a happy 6-year-old who loves going to school and visiting with her UCSF care team at checkups. She has fun dressing in her princess costumes, and her Make-A-Wish dream came true: She went to Disney World with her family!

05/30/2026

Festus Ezeli, NBA Champion with the Golden State Warriors, visited our Oakland hospital and brought food, gifts and smiles to our staff and patients! Festus treated our staff to a delicious lunch, along with drinks and sweets to enjoy.

He also visited patient floors, taking photos, signing autographs and gifting autographed Warriors jerseys to our kids. Thank you for spending the day with us and making it so special, Festus!

05/27/2026

Our hospital raised awareness for survivors of childhood trauma and their care teams during National !
We walked and raised funds in the Race to Rebuild in Alameda and hosted an informational table in our Oakland cafeteria, where patients and staff could make bracelets and share message of hope. Oakland Ballers mascot, Scrappy, and NBA Champion of the Golden State Warriors, Festus Ezeli, even stopped by to show support.
Wishing all trauma survivors strength, resilience and health.🌷

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!

05/08/2026

Please congratulate Andrea — she’s doing great and is seizure-free after brain surgery to remove a tumor!
Andrea experienced some smaller seizures in her early teens but eventually had a more serious seizure called a tonic-clonic or grand mal, which caused her to lose consciousness and collapse in 2016. After further testing, doctors determined Andrea had epilepsy and a non-cancerous brain tumor called a ganglioglioma near her left temple.
Andrea came to our Oakland children’s hospital for monitoring and brain surgery with Dr. Kurtis Auguste. In the year following her surgery, Andrea experienced a couple of more seizures, but with the right medications and care she has remained seizure-free since 2017!
Since her surgery, Andrea graduated from high school and earned her bachelor’s degree. She also got married and gave birth to a healthy baby boy! She continues to receive care at our adult neurology and brain tumor clinics and is doing great!

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! ❤️
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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!