Sister donates kidney to brother in Raksha Bandhan gesture

A 41-year-old woman from Pune has given her 27-year-old brother a new lease on life by donating one of her kidneys, a story that has emerged as a powerful testament to sibling bonds during the Raksha Bandhan festival. Kalpana Kokate made the life-saving donation to her brother, Rushikesh Nalawade, who had been battling end-stage renal disease for several years. The transplant, which took place in Pune, was the culmination of a long and difficult health journey for Nalawade. He had been suffering from a rare autoimmune disease called Wegener's granulomatosis, which he believes was triggered by inhaling smoke due to poor ventilation at a previous job at an automobile service centre. The condition progressively damaged his kidneys, leading to end-stage renal disease. Doctors recommended regular dialysis, and he had been undergoing the treatment for 89 months before the transplant became necessary as both of his kidneys failed. As his health deteriorated sharply, with rising creatinine levels and episodes of unconsciousness, a kidney transplant was identified as the only viable option.