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❤️Update 6/22/16
Hello all! Mark is looking great today! His arm is about the same, though, I think they have narrowed it down to be positional, which is a good thing. His back is really bothering him, overall just uncomfortable. They just turned off his last heart med he was on, so he just has normal saline running through it now. They planned to take out the neck line today, but decided it would be best to wait until after his biopsy tomorrow. He has transferred out of the cardiac ICU unit today in to a step down unit, here is the updated location info:
University Colorado Hospital
12605 E 16th Ave
Aurora, CO 80045
Room 376. Elevator E to 3rd floor. Turn right & down the hall on the left.
❤️Update 6/21/16
Good morning all! Marks been up in the chair for breakfast. Doctors have been in, but haven't heard what they had to say. All I've found out so far is that Mark is having numbing & tingling in his right arm & hand they believe to be temporary peripheral nerve damage either from arm position during surgery or from the IV. His back is hurting from sitting in the chair so he went back to bed for now.
❤️Update 6/20/16
Hello friends. As of today, Mark is doing really well according to him, as well as his team of doctors. His new ticker is doing its job! He will have the first heart biopsy Thursday, and then continue weekly thereafter for a period of time. This will assess for any type of rejection to the heart. They're gradually weaning him off the pressor medications and when this is done and the line in his neck is removed, he will be transferred out of ICU and be moved to CPCU (step-down unit). Has been up and walking today and said that it feels good. His pain isn't quite as severe as it has been since surgery. Let the prayers continue!!
❤️Update 6/19/16
Good morning everyone! Happy Father's Day to those of you who are fathers! Mark is looking and feeling a lot better today. His pain levels are down and he finally got a good night rest. They took two of his chest drains out, so now has only one. His hemoglobin level is down so they're going to give him a unit of blood. He was able to get out of bed and sit in a chair for two hours yesterday and was able to eat and drink for the first time. They plan to get him up and walking contingent upon the results of his labs today.
FYI - Mark said that anyone interested in visiting is welcome any time now.
University Colorado Hospital
12605 E 16th Ave
Aurora, CO 80045
Go to main entrance, take elevator D up to 2nd floor, Follow the signs for room 231.
Open 24/7, no kids allowed under 12 years.
❤️Update 6/18/16
Hello everyone! Mark is on the mend. They removed some tubes from his lower body so that he is able to sit up in a more comfortable position and maybe eat a little bit. He is stable, but a little tired & in some pain, all of which is expected at this point. The cardiac team up here is just amazing. In the comments is a pic of him today!
❤️Update 6:30 pm:
Mark's second surgery went really well. His chest is now closed and drainage tubes were inserted. He was able to begin breathing on his own again and his lab-work indicated good results. That said, they also extubated him. He is experiencing some pain, but it is expected and under control and his vitals are stable. The doctor said he is moving along as he should! God is good! Please continue prayers, means the world to him and our family.
❤️Update 3:00 pm:
Mark just left again for surgery. The bleeding has subsided enough to close his chest. He will also have chest tubes inserted to drain out any blood and fluids that shouldn't be present. He's been in good spirits, despite the fact that he is intubated.
❤️Update 6/17/16 post-transplant:
Mark finally received the call yesterday afternoon. I've never heard him be so excited! He and his wife, Vicky, made their way to Denver soon after. They did Mark's pre-op protocol while waiting for the donor's heart to be removed and flown to the University of Colorado Hospital late last night. Around 2:30 AM they were still in transport and his new heart was sewn in around 4:30 AM! Surgery ended around 6:30 AM. They left his chest open for now, as he is having some bleeding. Luckily, the bleeding isn't from his heart, so
they are closely monitoring it for awhile and then plan to close his chest later this afternoon. He will stay intubated and heavily sedated to keep him calm (he just woke up) until he gets out of the surgery to close his chest. Stay tuned for more updates.
The donor was in Colorado and required a fl2:30 call they were goinin the chest & the heart was on its rt was sewn in already! They just now finished but he's having bleeding probably from all the adhesions etc not from the heart itself so they are leaving his chest open for now & will plan to close him this afternoon so he will remain intubated until then."
I'll keep you posted as I hear more. If you'd like me to stop texting you, let me know! Thank you and thank you so much for everything each of you has done for Mark. It's been a hard battle for him as you all know and your continued prayers and support means the world! ❤️
Update 5/27/15
Mark was discharged from the hospital on 5/23! He went home with the LVAD and has been educated on how to operate and monitor the machine. The doctors decided that they would not attempt the cardio-conversion, or implant the defibrillator, as he currently has a blood clot in his heart and they do not want to take the chance of spreading it to his brain. They chose the lesser of the two evils and are attempting to decrease his heart rate and the blood cot via medication. He will be traveling to Denver once a week for a weekly check up. In the meantime, he couldn't be more excited to be home and close to his family and friends!
Update 5/20/15
Hello friends. Mark has made some more progress since the last update. He recently went through a procedure to remove the RVAD. With that being gone, many tubes were taken out of his chest and neck area. He couldn't have been happier as he is now able to move his neck! He currently still has the LVAD, of course. He has been recovering so well from all of his procedures that he didn't need to be in ICU anymore. He was transferred to a regular room this week. He really misses the ICU team after getting to know them so well. There was some talk about him being able to go home with the LVAD, however, his heart rate continues to switch back to A-flutter after a certain period of time being in a normal sinus rhythym. There is a possibilty he may have to have a defibrillator implanted before he is discharged to be on the safe side. As of tomorrow, they plan to try to cardioconvert him again in to a normal sinus rhythm and then they will have an idea at that point on how to proceed. We just want to continue to thank those of you who are following this journey with him, praying for him, and for all of the incredible donations! Much love to everyone!
Update 5/07/15
Mark's heart is still being pumped via the LVAD and RVAD machines. The doctors have mentioned the possibilty of removing the RVAD, which is the external pump, leaving him with just the LVAD, the internal pump. If this does happen, and the LVAD is working successfully on its own, he may be able to leave the hospital and stay in the Denver area until his new heart becomes available. As of right now, it is a waiting game to see how his body will react to the blood transfusions he has received, as well as giving his body time to heal from his open heart surgery. There are a lot of variables here and things are always changing. He has made some gains with his therapy team. He is able to sit up, stand up, and even walk down the ICU hall, with assistance of course. He is eating a regular cardiac diet and has been in great spirits considering his situation. We showed and told Mark many of the pictures and stories from the BWW event and he was overwhelmed with emotions. He stated he couldn't be more grateful and wanted to thank everyone, including BWW and ROTH, for all of the love and support and for going out of your way to help him. It is the little things that make such a huge difference. He had a grin from ear to ear! More updates to come as I hear more.
Update 4/30/15
Mark underwent surgery for approximately 8 hours yesterday and again today to close his chest and leg where the ECMO machine was previously inserted. The surgeries went well according to the doctors. They implanted an LVAD and RVAD to function together to pump his heart. In addition, they re-shocked him and he is now out of A-fib and in a normal sinus rhythm. Due to them having to put in the RVAD, he is unable to leave the hospital until a donor becomes available. The positive news is that he will be mobile and not completely bed ridden.
Dear Family and Friends,
Mark, 42 years old, is fighting for his life due to sudden and unexpected heart failure. He was transferred with a flight for life airplane from Pueblo to Denver, CO on 4/17/2015.
Several methods and interventions have been attempted by cardiac specialists to recover his heart, however, the muscles of his heart are completely weak and unable to pump properly. He has been put on a heart transplant list with an A1 status (top of the list) and is currently being kept alive by an ECMO machine.
Unfortunately, the out-of-pocket medical expenses he has already acquired, the cost of the heart transplant alone, and the medication/continued care that is required for the rest of his life are all astronomical. It is estimated that a transplant costs roughly 1 million dollars and the required monthly medications are approximately $2,500.
With Mark and his wife, Vicky, not being able to work at this time, and for Vicky's travel and housing expenses to be near him, their financial situation is very limited.
This guy with a BIG heart is in need of a new one. If you have the means, please help save his life! ANYTHING that you can donate will be such a blessing and will make a HUGE difference.
Thank you so much for your generosity and support through this tough and traumatic situation!
Hello all! Mark is looking great today! His arm is about the same, though, I think they have narrowed it down to be positional, which is a good thing. His back is really bothering him, overall just uncomfortable. They just turned off his last heart med he was on, so he just has normal saline running through it now. They planned to take out the neck line today, but decided it would be best to wait until after his biopsy tomorrow. He has transferred out of the cardiac ICU unit today in to a step down unit, here is the updated location info:
University Colorado Hospital
12605 E 16th Ave
Aurora, CO 80045
Room 376. Elevator E to 3rd floor. Turn right & down the hall on the left.
❤️Update 6/21/16
Good morning all! Marks been up in the chair for breakfast. Doctors have been in, but haven't heard what they had to say. All I've found out so far is that Mark is having numbing & tingling in his right arm & hand they believe to be temporary peripheral nerve damage either from arm position during surgery or from the IV. His back is hurting from sitting in the chair so he went back to bed for now.
❤️Update 6/20/16
Hello friends. As of today, Mark is doing really well according to him, as well as his team of doctors. His new ticker is doing its job! He will have the first heart biopsy Thursday, and then continue weekly thereafter for a period of time. This will assess for any type of rejection to the heart. They're gradually weaning him off the pressor medications and when this is done and the line in his neck is removed, he will be transferred out of ICU and be moved to CPCU (step-down unit). Has been up and walking today and said that it feels good. His pain isn't quite as severe as it has been since surgery. Let the prayers continue!!
❤️Update 6/19/16
Good morning everyone! Happy Father's Day to those of you who are fathers! Mark is looking and feeling a lot better today. His pain levels are down and he finally got a good night rest. They took two of his chest drains out, so now has only one. His hemoglobin level is down so they're going to give him a unit of blood. He was able to get out of bed and sit in a chair for two hours yesterday and was able to eat and drink for the first time. They plan to get him up and walking contingent upon the results of his labs today.
FYI - Mark said that anyone interested in visiting is welcome any time now.
University Colorado Hospital
12605 E 16th Ave
Aurora, CO 80045
Go to main entrance, take elevator D up to 2nd floor, Follow the signs for room 231.
Open 24/7, no kids allowed under 12 years.
❤️Update 6/18/16
Hello everyone! Mark is on the mend. They removed some tubes from his lower body so that he is able to sit up in a more comfortable position and maybe eat a little bit. He is stable, but a little tired & in some pain, all of which is expected at this point. The cardiac team up here is just amazing. In the comments is a pic of him today!
❤️Update 6:30 pm:
Mark's second surgery went really well. His chest is now closed and drainage tubes were inserted. He was able to begin breathing on his own again and his lab-work indicated good results. That said, they also extubated him. He is experiencing some pain, but it is expected and under control and his vitals are stable. The doctor said he is moving along as he should! God is good! Please continue prayers, means the world to him and our family.
❤️Update 3:00 pm:
Mark just left again for surgery. The bleeding has subsided enough to close his chest. He will also have chest tubes inserted to drain out any blood and fluids that shouldn't be present. He's been in good spirits, despite the fact that he is intubated.
❤️Update 6/17/16 post-transplant:
Mark finally received the call yesterday afternoon. I've never heard him be so excited! He and his wife, Vicky, made their way to Denver soon after. They did Mark's pre-op protocol while waiting for the donor's heart to be removed and flown to the University of Colorado Hospital late last night. Around 2:30 AM they were still in transport and his new heart was sewn in around 4:30 AM! Surgery ended around 6:30 AM. They left his chest open for now, as he is having some bleeding. Luckily, the bleeding isn't from his heart, so
they are closely monitoring it for awhile and then plan to close his chest later this afternoon. He will stay intubated and heavily sedated to keep him calm (he just woke up) until he gets out of the surgery to close his chest. Stay tuned for more updates.
The donor was in Colorado and required a fl2:30 call they were goinin the chest & the heart was on its rt was sewn in already! They just now finished but he's having bleeding probably from all the adhesions etc not from the heart itself so they are leaving his chest open for now & will plan to close him this afternoon so he will remain intubated until then."
I'll keep you posted as I hear more. If you'd like me to stop texting you, let me know! Thank you and thank you so much for everything each of you has done for Mark. It's been a hard battle for him as you all know and your continued prayers and support means the world! ❤️
Update 5/27/15
Mark was discharged from the hospital on 5/23! He went home with the LVAD and has been educated on how to operate and monitor the machine. The doctors decided that they would not attempt the cardio-conversion, or implant the defibrillator, as he currently has a blood clot in his heart and they do not want to take the chance of spreading it to his brain. They chose the lesser of the two evils and are attempting to decrease his heart rate and the blood cot via medication. He will be traveling to Denver once a week for a weekly check up. In the meantime, he couldn't be more excited to be home and close to his family and friends!
Update 5/20/15
Hello friends. Mark has made some more progress since the last update. He recently went through a procedure to remove the RVAD. With that being gone, many tubes were taken out of his chest and neck area. He couldn't have been happier as he is now able to move his neck! He currently still has the LVAD, of course. He has been recovering so well from all of his procedures that he didn't need to be in ICU anymore. He was transferred to a regular room this week. He really misses the ICU team after getting to know them so well. There was some talk about him being able to go home with the LVAD, however, his heart rate continues to switch back to A-flutter after a certain period of time being in a normal sinus rhythym. There is a possibilty he may have to have a defibrillator implanted before he is discharged to be on the safe side. As of tomorrow, they plan to try to cardioconvert him again in to a normal sinus rhythm and then they will have an idea at that point on how to proceed. We just want to continue to thank those of you who are following this journey with him, praying for him, and for all of the incredible donations! Much love to everyone!
Update 5/07/15
Mark's heart is still being pumped via the LVAD and RVAD machines. The doctors have mentioned the possibilty of removing the RVAD, which is the external pump, leaving him with just the LVAD, the internal pump. If this does happen, and the LVAD is working successfully on its own, he may be able to leave the hospital and stay in the Denver area until his new heart becomes available. As of right now, it is a waiting game to see how his body will react to the blood transfusions he has received, as well as giving his body time to heal from his open heart surgery. There are a lot of variables here and things are always changing. He has made some gains with his therapy team. He is able to sit up, stand up, and even walk down the ICU hall, with assistance of course. He is eating a regular cardiac diet and has been in great spirits considering his situation. We showed and told Mark many of the pictures and stories from the BWW event and he was overwhelmed with emotions. He stated he couldn't be more grateful and wanted to thank everyone, including BWW and ROTH, for all of the love and support and for going out of your way to help him. It is the little things that make such a huge difference. He had a grin from ear to ear! More updates to come as I hear more.
Update 4/30/15
Mark underwent surgery for approximately 8 hours yesterday and again today to close his chest and leg where the ECMO machine was previously inserted. The surgeries went well according to the doctors. They implanted an LVAD and RVAD to function together to pump his heart. In addition, they re-shocked him and he is now out of A-fib and in a normal sinus rhythm. Due to them having to put in the RVAD, he is unable to leave the hospital until a donor becomes available. The positive news is that he will be mobile and not completely bed ridden.
Dear Family and Friends,
Mark, 42 years old, is fighting for his life due to sudden and unexpected heart failure. He was transferred with a flight for life airplane from Pueblo to Denver, CO on 4/17/2015.
Several methods and interventions have been attempted by cardiac specialists to recover his heart, however, the muscles of his heart are completely weak and unable to pump properly. He has been put on a heart transplant list with an A1 status (top of the list) and is currently being kept alive by an ECMO machine.
Unfortunately, the out-of-pocket medical expenses he has already acquired, the cost of the heart transplant alone, and the medication/continued care that is required for the rest of his life are all astronomical. It is estimated that a transplant costs roughly 1 million dollars and the required monthly medications are approximately $2,500.
With Mark and his wife, Vicky, not being able to work at this time, and for Vicky's travel and housing expenses to be near him, their financial situation is very limited.
This guy with a BIG heart is in need of a new one. If you have the means, please help save his life! ANYTHING that you can donate will be such a blessing and will make a HUGE difference.
Thank you so much for your generosity and support through this tough and traumatic situation!