Rare Fetal Surgery at The Women’s Hospital at Jackson Memorial Gives Baby with Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia a Chance at Life

By: Krysten Brenlla

When Stephany Donoso, 34, learned she was pregnant, the West Palm Beach native and her husband, Marcelo Sauco, had just one question on their minds: “When are we going to lose him?”

“It wasn’t easy, because after our first baby was born, Stephany suffered two other miscarriages,” Marcelo said. “So, when Stephany learned she was pregnant again, we were ready for the worst.”

Despite their fears, Stephany’s pregnancy started out normal. However, an ultrasound confirmed their worst nightmare: the baby had a rare, life-threatening congenital condition.

“When I first met Stephany, we were faced with a challenge. Her baby had a congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH), which meant there was a hole in the diaphragm, the muscle that separates the chest from the abdomen and helps us breathe,” said Rodrigo Ruano, MD, director of the UHealth Jackson Fetal Care Center and division chief of UHealth Jackson Maternal-Fetal Medicine. “In most cases, the hernia occurs on the left side. But Stephany’s baby had a hernia on the right side, which made his condition extremely complex.”

With CDH, abdominal organs can move up into the chest and crowd the developing lungs, which can prevent them from growing naturally. In most cases, the condition can be serious for the baby.

But the UHealth Jackson Children’s Care team had another option.

“Because his lungs weren’t developing as they should, we had to think about how we could give him the best chance at life before he was born,” Dr. Ruano said. “We gave Stephany the option of having a tiny balloon placed inside her baby’s windpipe during a fetal surgery when she reached seven months of pregnancy. The balloon would temporarily block the airway, which would allow fluid to build up in his lungs and encourage them to grow before birth.”

Because Stephany’s baby had such a rare form of CDH, Dr. Ruano and his team needed special permission from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to perform the fetal procedure.

As Stephany approached seven months of pregnancy, she still didn’t know whether the procedure would be approved in time.

“I was about to reach eight months pregnant, and Marcelo and I were even discussing going to other centers,” Stephany said. “But I remember getting a call from Dr. Ruano’s team. They told me, ‘The balloons will arrive on Monday – are you still open to doing the surgery?’ And I said, ‘Well, of course. I’ll do whatever I need to do to help my baby.’”

“We told Dr. Ruano at one of the appointments, ‘If there’s even a 1 percent chance of survival, we’re going to do it,’” Marcelo added. “We’re going to use every resource we have to save him.”

In July 2025, Dr. Ruano and a multidisciplinary team successfully performed the fetal procedure at The Women’s Hospital at Jackson Memorial.

The surgery allowed for the baby’s lungs to develop more in the womb, and gave Stephany the option to continue her pregnancy.

Then, on August 31, 2025, at eight months pregnant, Stephany gave birth to her son, Thiago Sauco.

A few hours after he was born, Thiago was placed on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), a cardiopulmonary bypass, or type of life support, that temporarily takes over some of the work of the heart and lungs, keeping him alive while his lungs recovered.

“Because babies with CDH can have underdeveloped lungs, the first few days and weeks after birth are critical,” said Eduardo Perez, MD, a pediatric general surgeon at Holtz Children’s Hospital. “Fortunately, Thiago had the balloon placed during fetal surgery while still in the womb, allowing for a better course after he was born.”

The next day, Dr. Perez repaired Thiago’s hernia while he remained on ECMO, further increasing his chances of survival. After the procedure, he spent time in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Holtz Children’s, where his medical team closely monitored his breathing and supported him as his lungs continued to strengthen.

With the support of his care team at Holtz Children’s, Thiago made progress, one milestone at a time.

On December 19, 2025, after spending 110 days in the NICU, Thiago was ready to go home.

Today, he’s a happy, thriving 1-year-old, growing bigger and healthier every day.

“There are so many doctors, residents, nurses, and care team members at Holtz Children’s who I’ll forever be grateful for,” Stephany said. “To every team member at Jackson, thank you.”

“I just keep repeating this phrase that I heard while we were at Jackson, because it’s so important,” Marcelo said. “To have heard that at Jackson, every day, what you see the most are miracles. Thiago is living proof of a Jackson miracle.”