When Emilia Hope Mahoney was born March 24, 2021, her parents expected their precious newborn would die the same day.
Crushed by the news that Emilia had a fatal condition that denied her kidneys from developing, the Mahoneys prepared themselves for the worst.
But two and a half years later, after a special gift from her mother, the little girl – who wasn’t expected to live past a couple of hours – is a walking miracle.
Keep reading to learn more about how a mother’s hope gave her child life, twice!
Andi Mahoney was excited for her third child, until her 20-week scan in November 2020 revealed her unborn baby had bilateral renal agenesis, a condition where the kidneys never develop. More than 40 percent of babies with this condition are stillborn, and if born alive, the baby will live only a few hours.
Kidneys are critical to survival and though people are born with two, it’s possible to live a perfectly healthy life with just one. Doctors don’t know what causes bilateral renal agenesis, but a quarter of cases are linked to genetics.
Despite the devastating news, the mother wasn’t willing to lose hope that her unborn daughter would survive.
Shortly after her she learned of her baby’s fatal prognosis, Mahoney found a specialist in Miami and made the six-hour drive from her home in Jacksonville, Florida to the Fetal Institute in Miami.
Recalling her meeting with the doctor, Mahoney shared the grim news when speaking with USA Today. The specialist said, “Only about 0.013 percent of cases in America [are diagnosed each year]. The reason it’s impossible to survive the condition is because the baby has no fluid. Since they have no kidney to pee, they are not swallowing any fluids like they are supposed to.”
But the kidneys are not the only organs at risk with bilateral renal agenesis, which is also known as Potter syndrome. The baby’s lungs also stop developing, so over a 10-week period while she was still pregnant, Mahoney needed fluid infusions for the baby.
“I kept traveling to Miami to get more, to keep Emmie alive. My baby needed fluid to breathe. By the time I got to the 34-week mark, I had a [membrane] rupture,” Mahoney tells the outlet.
A ruptured membrane is the breaking of the amniotic sac before labor begins and once it’s broken, there is an increased risk of infection.
Mahoney had to think fast and find a hospital that would give her baby the greatest chance of survival. Discovering that a hospital in Stanford, California had experience with delivering babies with bilateral renal agenesis, Mahoney packed her bags and started her journey.
“I hopped on a flight from Jacksonville to California with my membranes ruptured. I wanted to go somewhere that would deliver me my Emmie.” Though it was earlier drilled into her that her unborn child would die, she adds that this hospital “gave me hope that she would live.”
Sometimes hope is all you need.
Emilia Hope was born on March 24, 2021. Doctors immediately gave her oxygen and rushing her in for surgery, they rallied behind her fight for life.
On March 25, Mahoney shared the news of Emmie’s birth on Facebook: “Doctors said there was no chance you would breathe at birth or live more than a few hours, but your soft cry at delivery is the most beautiful sound I’ve ever heard.” The post continues, “You are a miracle and an answered prayer! We have a long road ahead as we wait for your lungs to catch up and with dialysis, but you are here and everyday is a gift.”
For the next six months, while doctors monitored her underdeveloped lungs, Emmie lived in the hospital and when she was finally released, she went to Jacksonville for a short visit with her mom, dad, and two big sisters.
Still needing dialysis to stay alive, Emmie was then taken to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta with one of her parents for treatment. Wanting to be near their daughter, the family relocated to Atlanta to support her through treatments.
It was incredibly tough on the family but mostly for the fragile little baby, who desperately needed a kidney donor to live.
That’s when a miracle happened.
“I received the best news of my life when I found out we had matching blood types and that I was approved for the surgery,” Mahoney said. “I didn’t think twice. I knew I was giving my kidney to Emmie.”
Emmie stayed on dialysis until she was 30 months old and on July 25, her body accepted her mother’s kidney.
On July 27, while mom and baby were recovering in hospital, Mahoney shared a Facebook update on the two patients. “We are thanking God for a successful transplant and completely in awe of all that He aligned for us! Emmie is doing great! Thank you to our amazing prayer warriors! The love and support we have found on this journey is so humbling,” she writes.
On October 13, 2023, the family shared photos of Emmie, the first where she’s seen without any tubes attached to her body.
“We named her Hope before I even knew I would have to go through this journey,” Mahoney said in her interview with USA Today. “This is amazing. She was such a happy child that she just needed a chance. I am so thankful to the Lord and the doctors he chose for me.”
It is so heartwarming to hear that this mother was able to twice give little Emmie life! What an incredible opportunity that will surely bond them in a special way.
Please share this story of hope and let’s inspire others with the Mahoney’s miracle.
If you enjoyed reading this story, we’re sure you’ll like the one about another miracle baby born to a couple in North Carolina!
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