On January 14, 2026, Briana Dery of Twining, Michigan, emerged from a ten-hour surgery as the first person in her state to receive both a new intestine and a new kidney in a single operation—a procedure so rare that only 56 have ever been performed across the entire United States. At 33, Dery had spent nearly two decades fighting a condition that once seemed to offer no way forward, making this moment not just a medical milestone but a second chance at life itself.
Dery's health crisis began in 2008 after a mission trip to Honduras, when she contracted an illness that never resolved. By 2010, her intestines had stopped working entirely. Doctors diagnosed her with chronic intestinal pseudo-obstruction caused by visceral myopathy—a rare disorder that paralyzes the intestines and prevents the body from absorbing nutrients. For years, she survived on intravenous nutrition while battling repeated infections. In 2017, she received an intestinal transplant at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, but the organ gradually failed over time. The years of illness and medical treatment took their own toll, ultimately causing her kidneys to fail as well. By 2025, Dery needed both organs replaced to survive.
Faced with this reality, her surgical team at Henry Ford Hospital made a bold decision: rather than performing two separate surgeries—each carrying enormous risk given the extensive scar tissue from her previous operations—they would attempt a single combined procedure. That choice placed Dery among an exceptionally small group of patients in the country. Combined intestinal-kidney transplants represent some of the most complex surgery in modern medicine. The intestine was long called the "forbidden organ" in transplantation because of its intricate immune system and blood supply, making any combined procedure extraordinarily difficult and dangerous.
The ten-hour operation required extraordinary precision. Led by Dr. Shunji Nagai, surgical director of Liver, Intestine and Multivisceral Transplant, and Dr. Dean Kim, surgical director of Kidney and Pancreas Transplant, the surgical team worked through layers of scar tissue to remove Dery's failed intestines. They then implanted the donor intestines and carefully restored blood flow. Only after that delicate work was complete could they create space for the kidney transplant, connecting its blood vessels and ureter while maintaining stable blood pressure and protecting both new organs. "Keeping her blood pressure stable while protecting the intestine's blood supply made this surgery uniquely delicate," Dr. Kim said.
The success of this operation marks a significant achievement not just for Dery, but for the Henry Ford Transplant Institute and the state of Michigan. Dr. Marwan Abouljoud, director of the institute, called it one of the most complex cases the center has undertaken. "As Michigan's most comprehensive transplant center, we're equipped to take on the most advanced cases," he said. "This transplant reflects our commitment to patients who once had no options and shows how our teams continue to advance what's possible."
For Dery, that possibility means looking ahead to a future where food is no longer something to fear, where her body can finally absorb the nutrients it needs, and where she can reclaim the life that illness had stolen from her.