After a successful kidney transplant Asmi Arde (in blue dress at the centre) at Manipal Hospital, Kharad. Vimal Arde, Asmi's grandmother (third from left) donated her kidney
When her nine-year-old granddaughter Asmi was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease, 69-year-old Vimal Arde did not hesitate and stepped forward offering to donate her own kidney. While Asmi’s parents willingly offered their kidney, it was the grandmother who firmly insisted that this was her gift.
“My daughter-in-law Reshma has three children and the youngest is just one-and-a-half years old. How will she manage the children after donating her kidney,” the 69-year-old said. In a selfless act of love, Vimal Arde refused to let her son Kishore and daughter-in-law Reshma face the crisis alone and donated her kidney.
While the living donor kidney transplant was performed this September at Manipal Hospital, Kharadi a follow-up of the donor and the patient showed that both were recovering well. Asmi who stays with her parents in Chinchwad said they celebrated her birthday on October 16 and makes it a point to follow the doctor’s instructions which includes eating home-cooked food and staying well hydrated among others.
Asmi’s mother Reshma recalled that the diagnosis came as a huge shock to the family. “Asmi is my eldest daughter and just a week before the diagnosis she was participating in school’s sports activities. So, it was a huge shock when medical tests after a brief spell of fever and weakness showed a critically low haemoglobin level of just 3 g/dl. Further investigations confirmed severely impaired kidney function and imaging showed that both kidneys were extremely small and shrunken, indicating chronic kidney disease that had gone unnoticed due to the absence of urinary symptoms,” Reshma said.
For the family, coming to terms with the need for a kidney transplant was emotionally overwhelming. During this challenging time, the 69-year-old grandmother Vimal who stays in Satara took charge and firmly stood by her son and daughter-in-law and donated her kidney.
The doctors admit that this was a rare case that showed age and familial relations can be considered when performing paediatric transplants.
Dr Manishkumar Mali, Consultant–Nephrology and Kidney Transplant, Manipal Hospital Kharadi, told The Indian Express that the considerable age gap between the donor and the recipient made the situation challenging.
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“The patient had irreversible renal failure due to a chronic, undiagnosed condition and the kidney transplant was the best treatment option to not only save her life but also ensure a good quality of life.
Patient’s grandmother, who volunteered to be the donor, underwent compatibility testing as part of the pre-transplant assessment and preparation. She underwent comprehensive cardiac, renal and general health tests and was determined to be medically fit despite her age. This was a rare and demanding case involving a nine-year-old girl weighing just 14 kg and hypertension. The transplant was performed under general anaesthesia after a comprehensive pre-anaesthetic evaluation. After surgery, close observation and post-transplant care were provided to both the donor and the recipient,” Dr Mali said.
What also worked in the grandmother’s favour was that she did not have any medical condition like diabetes or hypertension. Vimal said that exposure to farm life with healthy food eating habits like jowar bhakri and vegetables grown at the farm has contributed to her good health. “I have lived my life, but my granddaughter is just starting hers. When she started falling sick again, struggling to breathe and becoming too weak to even walk, it was unbearable to see her in this situation. When the doctors finally told us that her kidneys had failed, there was no question in my mind—I wanted to donate my kidney to save her,” Vimal said.
On the surgical complexity in this case, Dr Anand Dharaskar, Consultant – Urology, Manipal Hospital Kharadi, said that kidney transplantation in children is always complex, particularly when the recipient is a nine-year-old with small veins and low body weight. “Because an adult’s kidney is almost 11 cm in size, it is necessary to make modified incisions and use extremely precise vascular suturing to safely place it within a small abdominal cavity. In this instance, the process was meticulously planned and carried out seamlessly with dedicated and efficient team work,” he said.
Anuradha Mascarenhas is a Senior Editor at The Indian Express, based in Pune. With a career spanning three decades, she is one of the most respected voices in Indian journalism regarding healthcare, science and environment and research developments. She also takes a keen interest in covering women's issues .
Professional Background
Education: A gold medalist in Communication and Journalism from Savitribai Phule Pune University and a Master’s degree in Literature.
Author: She authored the biography At The Wheel Of Research, which chronicles the life and work of Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, the former Chief Scientist at the WHO.
Key Focus: She combines scientific accuracy with storytelling, translating complex medical research into compelling public and human-interest narratives.
Awards and Recognition
Anuradha has won several awards including the Press Council of India's national award for excellence in journalism under the gender based reporting category in 2019 and the Laadli Media award (gender sensitivity -2024). A recipient of the Lokmat journalism award (gender category-2022), she was also shortlisted for the RedInk awards for excellence in journalism-2021. Her debut book At The Wheel Of Research, an exclusive biography of Dr Soumya Swaminathan the inaugural chief scientist of World Health Organisation was also nominated in the Popular Choice Category of JK Paper AUTHER awards. She has also secured competitive fellowships including the Laadli Media Fellowship (2022), the Survivors Against TB – New Research in TB Media Fellowship (2023) and is part of the prestigious 2025 India Cohort of the WomenLift Health Leadership Journey.”
Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025)
1. Cancer & Specialized Medical Care
"Tata Memorial finds way to kill drug-resistant cancer cells" (Nov 26, 2025): Reporting on a breakthrough for triple-negative breast cancer, one of the most aggressive forms of the disease.
Discipline, diet and purpose; How a 97-year-old professor defies ageing'' (Nov 15, 2025) Report about Prof Gururaj Mutalik, the first Head of Department at Pune's B J Government Medical College who at 97 credits his longevity to healthy habits and a strong sense of purpose.
2. Environmental Health (The "Breathless Pune" Series)
Long-term exposure even to 'moderate' air leads to chronic heart, lung, kidney issues" (Nov 26, 2025): Part of an investigative series highlighting that even "safe" pollution levels are damaging to vital organs.
"For every 10 µg/m3 increase in PM2.5 level, there was 6-8% jump in medicine sales" (Nov 23, 2025): Using commercial data to prove the direct link between air quality and respiratory illnesses in Pune.
3. Lifestyle & Wellness News
"They didn't let cancer, diabetes and heart disease stop them from travelling" (Dec 22, 2025): A collaborative piece featuring survivors who share practical tips for traveling with chronic conditions.
At 17, his BP shot up to 200/120 mmHG; Lancet study flags why child and teen hypertension doubled between 2000 and 2020'' (Nov 12,2025)--A report that focusses on 17-year-old-boy's hypertensive crisis and reflects the rising global trend of high blood pressure among children and adolescents.
4. Scientific Recognition & Infrastructure
For promoting sci-comm, gender diversity: IUCAA woman prof highlighted in Nature" (Nov 25, 2025): Covering the global recognition of Indian women scientists in gender studies and physics.
Pune researchers find a spiral galaxy like the Milky Way from early universe'' (December 3, 2025)- A report on how Indian researchers discovered a massive galaxy that existed when the universe was just 1.5 billion years old , one of the earliest to have been observed so far.
Signature Beat: Health, Science & Women in Leadership
Anuradha is known for her COVID-19 reportage, where she was one of the first journalists to provide detailed insights into the Covishield and Covaxin trials. She has a dedicated interest in gender diversity in health and science, often profiling women researchers who are breaking the "leaky pipeline" in STEM fields. Her writing style is scrupulous, often featuring interviews with top-tier scientists and health experts from various institutions.
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