Patient Stories Blog
By Adam Pick
Suzi Goes From Asymptomatic Nerves To Another Dr. Gillinov Success Story!
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: December 4, 2024
It is amazing to see the physical, emotional and spiritual transformation that occurs in patients before-and-after heart valve surgery. For example, here is the patient story of Suzi Epstein, an asymptomatic patient who was unexpectedly diagnosed with severe mitral regurgitation.
Patient Humor: Doug’s Ode To The Incentive Spirometer
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: December 4, 2024
I never imagined this… But, thank the heavens for the fun and humor of patients in our online support community.
Patient Spotlight: Lisa, Blue Socks & Mountain Biking
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: November 20, 2024
Hearing from patients in our Community about their heart valve surgery success stories remains one of my favorite parts of running this website. This time, I heard from Lisa Letizio after her heart valve surgery.
David’s Endocarditis Surprise & Weight Loss Journey
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: November 13, 2024
I just received a great patient story from David Monasterski who is a new member of our community. After connecting with David at our YouTube Channel, he shared a very insightful story with me about bacterial endocarditis, aortic valve leaflet holes, the importance of second opinions, his weight loss journey and more.
In Uganda, We Help Nsimire Get Life-Saving Heart Surgery!
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: October 23, 2024
I am incredibly happy to share that… Thanks to the support of this community and our amazing partner, Gift of Life International, we just helped Nsimire, a courageous 8-year old girl, undergo a life-saving cardiac procedure in Uganda!!!
Patient Insight: 10 Spiritual Lessons I Learned From Heart Surgery
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: October 2, 2024
The patients in our heart valve community never cease to amaze me. I could ramble on about what I just received in my inbox from Cuauhtemoc Velazquez, a patient from Toronto, Canada. Instead, I will simply provide you this wonderful opportunity to watch an extraordinary video that Cuauhtemoc shared with me titled, “10 Spiritual Lessons I Learned From Heart Surgery”.
Patient Alert: David Warns You About Cardiac Amyloidosis
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: September 26, 2024
Since starting HeartValveSurgery.com nearly twenty years ago, I have learned a lot about the heart. However, it was not until I received this email from David Cattell, a heart valve patient in our community, that I became aware of an under-diagnosed condition known as cardiac amyloidosis. Many thanks to David for sharing his story and his research below.
In Uganda, Patrick Readies for Heart Valve Surgery Thanks to You!
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: July 7, 2024
Wonderful news!!!
NHL Superstar, Henrik Lundqvist, Interviews His Heart Surgeon, Dr. Eric Roselli
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: June 6, 2024
Henrik Lundqvist, the NHL superstar goalie of the New York Rangers, is doing an extraordinary job raising awareness to heart valve disease and aortic aneurysms.
Patient Update: Koert Travels from California to New York for a Ross Procedure by Dr. Paul Stelzer
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: May 19, 2024
Hearing from patients about their heart valve success stories is my favorite part of running the HeartValveSurgery.com community.
Guest Post: Lynn’s 5 Lessons Learned for Complex Mitral Valve Surgery
Written by: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: April 22, 2024
I’ve said it before and I look forward to saying it again…
New Video: Bono’s Heart Valve Success Story!
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: March 21, 2024
If you didn’t know… Bono, U2’s lead singer, revealed in the first chapter of his book, Surrender, that he underwent a complex heart valve and aortic aneurysm surgery in 2016. It turns out that Dr. David Adams, a leading cardiac surgeon and friend of our community, performed Bono’s surgery.
In Uganda, I Am Thankful for Mohammed’s Life-Saving Surgery
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: November 23, 2023
I am happy to share that Mohammed, a courageous 14-year-old boy from Uganda who suffered from severe mitral valve regurgitation, just had successful heart surgery.
Susan Is Thankful for Her Three Sons, Dr. Frank, Rush University & Her Cow Valve Replacement
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: November 23, 2023
With Thanksgiving upon us, it was great to receive this note from Susan about her health, her three sons and her cow valve.
Julia Overcomes Aortic Stenosis & Healthcare Inequity Thanks to Medtronic TAVR
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate & Author
Published: September 18, 2023; This post is sponsored by Medtronic
Aortic stenosis is a life-threatening disease that is under-diagnosed and under-treated. In fact, the survival rate is just 50% at two years for patients diagnosed with symptomatic severe aortic stenosis. To make matters worse, only 3.4% of patients that receive non-invasive transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) are Hispanic.
Michele Returns to Pickle Ball After Heart Valve Surgery!
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: August 3, 2023
It’s my favorite part of running this website… Hearing from all the wonderful patients in our community! For example, I just received a fantastic email from Michele Marcus after our recent webinar.
Chemical Engineer, Ray, Gets Ozaki Procedure for Valvular Flow Dynamics
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: June 21, 2023
As a follow-up to our post, “Ozaki Procedure: New Research for Aortic Valve Patients”, I wanted to share the wonderful patient story of Ray Poole from New York. Ray is an aortic valve patient and chemical engineer who recently underwent the Ozaki Procedure.
Andy & David Transform Heart Surgery Into Brotherhood!
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: May 17, 2023
The patient stories in our Community never cease to amaze and inspire me. For example, this is the story of Andy Dial and David Seligman.
Mitral Valve Awareness: Mara Dances Past Mitral Valve Surgery!
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: April 13, 2023
It is downright wonderful to receive so many enthusiastic patient emails about “Mitral Valve Disease Awareness Week“.
Mitral Valve Awareness: A Stethoscope Led to Howard’s Life-Saving Surgery
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: April 11, 2023
Within minutes of announcing the launch of Mitral Valve Awareness Disease Week, my inbox started to receive great patient stories in response to this global initiative.
