Don’t let the cardiologist or coroner be the first to tell you about your disease.

by Dr. Craig Backs

I once met with a man in his 60’s who I cared for years ago. He was interested in reconnecting because his current physician had retired. After speaking with him, I offered to develop a custom CurePlan. He declined and stated, “I eat right, I exercise, and my doctor says my cholesterol is good.” I decided to not push the issue because it rarely if ever works to change beliefs. 

A few weeks later, I received a call from the hospital. It was this man’s wife, informing me that he had suffered cardiac arrest while exercising the prior morning. He had been successfully resuscitated and was recovering without apparent residual effects.

He now wanted to discuss a CurePlan because his catheterization had demonstrated three vessel coronary artery disease and he was recommended for coronary bypass surgery. He asked: “What should I do?”   

Sadly, I had little to offer him and urged him to follow the advice he had gotten for standard care. I had no influence on his hospital care other than as a “friend” that would only create friction with his surgeon and other doctors. 

I could have suggested he go home, come see me to discuss the details, and then decide if surgery, with all its risks, is the correct option. However, I didn’t believe it was worth the risk of him going into cardiac arrest again outside the hospital. I did not have all of the details of his diagnosis and he had previously declined my offer for a custom CurePlan and advice for proactive measures.

So, he and his family went through life altering operation on the heels of a life altering cardiac arrest and resuscitation. All of this would likely have been avoided if he had known of his arterial disease early and proactively treated the missed root causes proactively. 

I hope that someone who reads this story will act proactively in their own interest and for the benefit of their loved ones. Identify the disease that lurks within and could take you out in a moment without warning.