Advanced heart failure and life-changing surgery turned two Army veterans who were strangers into friends.
Christopher Williams and Daniel Kay were each diagnosed with the beginnings of heart failure more than 10 years ago. In 2022, doctors at Michael E. DeBakey VA in Houston recommended that a left ventricular assist device – a small, battery-operated pump that helps the heart circulate blood – be implanted into each man’s chest.
“For years, I had been struggling with heart issues,” Williams said in a VA release. “I had a heart attack last January and my defibrillator went off 14 times. After that, I had trouble walking and going about my daily life. When the doctors at Houston VA told me I could be the first veteran at this VA to get the LVAD, I jumped on it and I never looked back.”
The self-described “gym rat” turned 55 a few days before undergoing the LVAD procedure in April of 2022. Williams then began the recovery process that involved intense physical therapy and a lot of mental and physical adjustments.
“The doctors want you up and walking right away after the procedure, and I could hardly get out of bed,” he said.
Williams can now walk for miles, works out at the gym and feels great. He hopes to have a heart transplant sometime in the future but says he views every day as a gift.
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“Today I’m a different man than I was this time last year," he said.
A few months after his surgery, Williams was introduced to Kay, who was also weighing the idea of getting the procedure. The two immediately bonded.
“Christopher told me to stop being selfish and instead focus my thoughts on being there for my family in the years to come,” said Kay, 62. “During my recovery, he encouraged me when I needed it and told me to get up and move when I needed that, too. Meeting him changed my life.”
While his recovery has been challenging at times, Kay is thrilled with the results.
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“I thank God and I thank the staff at VA for saving my life,” he said.
While bonding among patients receiving complex medical procedures is not uncommon, Dr. Steve Antoine, an advanced heart failure cardiologist and assistant professor of medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, said he is constantly amazed at how veterans like Williams and Kaye are there for each other.
“These veterans don’t know each other but they step up and help each other through scary and life-changing experiences,” he said. “They truly are battle buddies. It’s incredible to see.”
Houston VA is one of just a few VA facilities performing the LVAD procedure nationwide. Earlier this month, Houston VA surgeons also performed their first heart transplant surgery.
Reach Julia LeDoux at Julia@connectingvets.com.