Cheney gets a new heart....

[legrandfromage]

I just saw a news item talking about Dick Cheney getting a heart transplant. I'll leave the obvious comments that will spin off of that to the TV/cable/internet comedians. I'm just curious as whether or not it strikes anyone else as odd that someone of his age and with his history would come up in the waiting line for a transplant? A slow day perhaps.....?

[Dalejr]

Yeah I read about that last night. Don't want to offend anyone but if you got money and power it gets you whatever you want.

[DC_MPA]

Wonder if it will be weird getting a pulse again. No pun intended with that statement either. Apparently when that new vest device was inserted it took over his pumping because his heart was too weak to even pump. The new device didn't pump as much as a steady flow so when one checked for a pulse it was always flatline even though he was walking and living a normal life.

That is so crazy to me that we seem to be on the verge of drastically extended human life with artificial devices.


Just his past week a dear loved one of mine (87 yrs old) had a heart spell. They tested him and confirmed to put in a pacemaker. The surgery was 30 minutes from start to finish and the pacemaker was the size of a silver dollar with two wires sticking out. Just bizarre to me that it takes longer to get your teeth cleaned or a haircut than it does to get a pacemaker put in.

[DC_MPA]

On the OP's question. I have more of an issue with Larry Hagman getting bumped up on the list to receive livers when he fully admits he was a ragging alcoholic and marijuana and LSD addict before getting the transplant.

[Topgumby]

I heard he'd been waiting for over a year. Yeah, power and money help a lot. Think Steve Jobs, David Crosby, Mickey Mantle, and Evil Knievel.

[TonyH]

I heard he'd been waiting for over a year. Yeah, power and money help a lot. Think Steve Jobs, David Crosby, Mickey Mantle, and Evil Knievel.

I was going to reference Jobs, but you beat me to it.

[Phog Allen]

Thank you gents for leaving the political diatribes aside. I do agree though that modern medicine is simply stunning in its capabilities. Not even so much the heart transplant given a half century ago this would have been considered likely impossible and now we expect it. I was unaware of this pump technology to keep his heart going. Amazing. We are truly on the verge of the bionic man. Somewhat frightening really. Still, the potential for a cybernetic organism(Cyborg) is astounding. And lets not get off into Terminator territory. What I am speaking of is Steve Austin. Human beings fitted with mechanical, bionic parts. I am sure I am not using the proper terms for this but I think you get the drift. In my lifetime I have seen double amputees go from hobbling on two peg legs and noticeable at no more than a glance to people running 100 metre dashes with titanium limbs that actually give them a speed advantage over those with their own legs. Mind blowing. I am sure they would trade anything to get their limbs back but again, you get the idea. Same with organs like lungs and heart. I wonder how long it is before we have heart and lung replacements that cause no major rejection issues and no more waiting? Just trying to be positive here guys.

Cheers, Todd

[TonyH]

Thank you gents for leaving the political diatribes aside. I do agree though that modern medicine is simply stunning in its capabilities. Not even so much the heart transplant given a half century ago this would have been considered likely impossible and now we expect it. I was unaware of this pump technology to keep his heart going. Amazing. We are truly on the verge of the bionic man. Somewhat frightening really. Still, the potential for a cybernetic organism(Cyborg) is astounding. And lets not get off into Terminator territory. What I am speaking of is Steve Austin. Human beings fitted with mechanical, bionic parts. I am sure I am not using the proper terms for this but I think you get the drift. In my lifetime I have seen double amputees go from hobbling on two peg legs and noticeable at no more than a glance to people running 100 metre dashes with titanium limbs that actually give them a speed advantage over those with their own legs. Mind blowing. I am sure they would trade anything to get their limbs back but again, you get the idea. Same with organs like lungs and heart. I wonder how long it is before we have heart and lung replacements that cause no major rejection issues and no more waiting? Just trying to be positive here guys.

Cheers, Todd

How long until stem cell research allows doctors to simply "grow" a new organ from the patient's own genetic material? Wild stuff.

[eastomjac]

saddest part of the whole thing is they make mom and dad choose to eat or get medicine and we paid for his entire health care for the last 50?+- years.wonder if they cut his benifits?

[franz]

This should go without saying, fellas, but please keep in mind our zero tolerance policy (http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/258717-Restoring-Civility-in-the-Barber-Shop-A-Friendly-Warning) on political debates, arguments, rants, etc.

[Kentos]

I personally like my heart with fava beans and a nice Chianti

[craig87c]

How long until stem cell research allows doctors to simply "grow" a new organ from the patient's own genetic material? Wild stuff.

Can't wait for this to happen. Also,it'll mean steak grown in test tubes. Both amazing and horribly disgusting all at the same time.

PS: remind me to watch the daily show/Colbert report tomorrow. They're going to have a field day with this Cheney news Monday night!

[JellyFox]

He's had five heart attacks. Surely if he were gaming the system like Steve Jobs, it wouldn't have taken him 20 months to get a new heart.

[saf]

Who didn't get a heart because he did. He is too old to get a new heart when a young person who hasn't had a chance to live may die from the lack of that heart.

[Captain Pre-Capsize]

My first thought was this will keep the late night comedians busy for the next week with new material.

B&B has a healthy atmosphere - let’s keep it! (No political references please)

[Shave A Buck]

Does anyone know how many people are waiting for heart transplants that are say 30 years old. My personal guess would be not too many. Just because someone has heart attacks does not make them a candidate per se, I would imagine there would have to be some defect to the heart that could not be repaired or treated.

I see the point with money and power but this would entail too many people to bump him up the list and raise more flags than just on some shaving board. Perhaps you are correct but I will go with it just being his turn.

[NE_Sue]

I've been very interested in the coverage of this transplant, as CHF is what I was diagnosed with last summer when I was rushed to the hospital.

Here's some interesting info:
More than 3,100 Americans currently are on the national waiting list for a heart transplant. Just over 2,300 heart transplants were performed last year, according to the United Network for Organ Sharing. And 330 people died while waiting.
According to UNOS, 332 people over age 65 received a heart transplant last year. The majority of transplants occur in 50- to 64-year-olds.
Heart transplants produce bills in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. The drugs needed to keep these transplants working cost tens of thousands of dollars every year. Organ donations are sought from the rich and poor alike. But, if you do not have health insurance you are far less likely to be able to get evaluated for a heart transplant much less actually get a transplant.

I have no idea what criteria is used to decide who actually gets a transplant. I did read that in Cheney's specific case, the pump he had which was keeping him alive is basically designed to be a temporary bridge until transplantation, and the longer it is in place, the sicker the patient gets. Without a transplant, life is not sustainable long term with the pump.

Sue

[tchudson]

There's a great episode of a show called "Better Off Ted" about developing steak in the lab....


Can't wait for this to happen. Also,it'll mean steak grown in test tubes. Both amazing and horribly disgusting all at the same time.

PS: remind me to watch the daily show/Colbert report tomorrow. They're going to have a field day with this Cheney news Monday night!

[incucrash]

Maybe Cheney abided by rules because of this?


At any rate, we can agree money keeps you alive longer

http://articles.latimes.com/2008/may/30/local/me-ucla30

What sickens me is the gang tattoos more then likely contributed to the liver failure


but people who had healthy lifestyles died waiting for a transplant....

Crazy

[Go West Young Man]

Does anyone know how many people are waiting for heart transplants that are say 30 years old. My personal guess would be not too many. Just because someone has heart attacks does not make them a candidate per se, I would imagine there would have to be some defect to the heart that could not be repaired or treated.

I see the point with money and power but this would entail too many people to bump him up the list and raise more flags than just on some shaving board. Perhaps you are correct but I will go with it just being his turn.


There are protocols that dictate who gets what organ, and the decision is made by a neutral committee who weigh all the facts on a point system.

The patient's age and overall condition are part of it, but you need to more or less match the body weight of donor and recipient. Organs have a very tight shelf-life, so physical proximity between the donor and the recipient is taken into account along with a handful of other considerations.

The average heart transplant patient is on the list for 8 or 9 months (according to NPR this a.m.) Cheney was on it for 20 months, which means that he got bumped repeatedly over that time. In this case, there likely wasn't another suitable recipient ready to take the heart in the required timeframe, so Cheney's number came up.

[TonyH]

Maybe Cheney abided by rules because of this?


At any rate, we can agree money keeps you alive longer

http://articles.latimes.com/2008/may/30/local/me-ucla30

What sickens me is the gang tattoos more then likely contributed to the liver failure


but people who had healthy lifestyles died waiting for a transplant....

Crazy

As someone with several tattoos, I feel that your comment is totally out of line.

There isn't mention of "gang tattoos" even once in the article - there is no indication whatsoever to support your claim. In fact, there is no physical description of the man at all. While it is common knowledge that many Yakuza sport traditional tattoos, many also drink heavily and use drugs as well. To dismiss this man's transplant as being related to a perfectly acceptable lifestyle choice in the modern world (tattooing) is completely unfounded. The article gives no indication what the reasons were for the man's needing a transplant, and to project your biases onto the situation is unfair at best.

There are many folks here on the forum who are law-abiding citizens and also happen to have/enjoy tattoos. Does a Yakuza that games the US government for a transplant deserve some scorn? Sure. But please don't lump all of us folks together by assuming that his body art was the cause.

[oc_in_fw]

There are many folks here on the forum who are law-abiding citizens and also happen to have/enjoy tattoos.

Here is another one. If I ever have liver problems, it will be because of six or seven years of drinking too much- nothing to do with the tattoos. I have given up the beer, btw (I know, 10 days sober- big whoop-dee-do). I will say, I have dropped 15 pounds, and spent six hours out doing yard work yesterday- it felt good not to feel like total crap when I was done.

[T-Dog]

One could argue that he finally got his first heart.

[incucrash]

Im not going to apologize, I did say more then likely contributed, and never downed people with tattoos
Lots of my friends are tatted

Nothing against tattoos, look it up, its an oldstory
They are fully covered, and an article did state it probably helped cause the liver to fail.

The lifestyle of drinking was probably worse

I plan on a tattoo or two,

Here is a link

http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-18560_162-5484118.html


Its an old story, lots of articles referenced tattoos as one of reasons, false or not, it is what my memory recalled

[oc_in_fw]

One could argue that he finally got his first heart.

I was going to post a youtubed Wizard of Oz clip, but figured that might rile some :001_smile

[DC_MPA]

Lol @ OC