This heart transplant survivor completed a 21-km marathon a year after surgery!

Braveheart's feat gives hope to many heart transplant patients.

Sandhya Raghavan | Published: January 22, 2018 11:48 am

What if your doctor told you that your heart has given away and that you may need a heart transplantation to stay alive? For most of us, this may sound like a death knell. For 40-year-old Rupayan Roy, however, the verdict came was far from a death sentence. In fact, it gave him a new lease of life and an excuse to live life just the way he intended to. After the successful heart transplantation, Rupayan has achieved the incredible by completing a 21km half marathon in October 2017, challenging the notion that life has to change drastically after a heart transplant.

Health crisis
Before he was diagnosed with the cardiac problem, Rupayan was a regular 40-year-old balancing work and family life like anybody else. “I was always into sports,” he says. “I was mainly into football and played a lot of cricket since my school days. But over time, I started feeling stress and fatigued, which I thought were the natural signs of ageing.” What started as shortness of breath one day turned into relentless coughing. Gradually, Rupayan’s energy levels started waning and he was no longer at his healthiest best. “Over time, I saw blood streaks in my sputum. I knew something was wrong when these streaks started turning into clots,” he says.

The diagnosis from hell
In May 2016, Rupayan consulted his general physician who advised him to go for an echocardiography and that’s when the problem was detected. “Test results showed that I had an irreversible cardiac condition and that my heart was dilated. To add to this, I only had 20 percent left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF),” he adds. The left ventricle is the main pumping chamber of the heart that sends oxygenated blood to the rest of the body. Normal LVEF ideally ranges from 55 to 70 percent. This obviously meant trouble for Rupayan. There was only one option left for him if he wanted to live — heart transplantation, which was a daunting prospect.

Dr. Suresh Rao, Rupayan’s cardiologist says, “Rupayan had a dilated cardiomyopathy. There are many causes for the condition, from viral infections to genetic disorders, metabolic disorders, ischemic cardiomyopathy etc. but his case is idiopathic where the cause is not known. It’s probably transmitted by genes.”

Family support
Emotions ran high for the Roy family who was obviously distraught at the turn of events. But with his faith in God and his family unshaken, Rupayan was ready to face his destiny head-on. “We went into a huddle. My family and I always felt that ‘God tries those He loves most.’ And I cannot thank him enough for the beautiful family he endowed me with. My recipe for revival lay with my family’s deep resolve to pull me out of this deep crisis. Their effort was unrelenting,” he recollects.

Their support gave him immense peace and the courage to soldier on. And on 31st July, two months after his diagnosis, Rupayan underwent a heart transplant surgery at Fortis Malar Hospital helmed by Dr KR Balakrishnan, Director- Cardiac Sciences and Dr Suresh Rao, Head of Department of Cardiac Anaesthesia and Cardiac Critical Care. Needless to say, the surgery was a success and Rupayan was soon on his road to recovery.

Running for a cause
Since sports were always a part of Rupayan’s life, he didn’t let the surgery throw a spanner in his fitness goals. But it was Dr Balakrishnan’s reassuring words that sowed the seeds of determination in Rupayan’s mind. “During my pre-transplant days, when I felt distraught and disillusioned, Dr Balakrishnan provided me the right fillip and spirited me to get on board with hope. On one such occasion, the doctor said that I could run the “World Marathon” in just about two years time. I felt hope and happiness. A marathon for the Martyrs’ cause was the best way to make a noble beginning and also to prove Dr Balakrishnan right: A heart transplant patient could run a marathon in just about a year!” he says with pride.

Being fit and active after surgery is one thing, but should a heart transplant survivor try a labour-intensive feat like marathon running? Dr Rao, whom Rupayan credits with clearing most of his apprehensions and misconceptions, says, “Heart transplant patients can engage in labour intensive cardiovascular activities. However, if they are not doing regular exercises, then they need cardiac evaluation before doing such workouts. If they have coronary artery disease (which can develop after transplant) they can suffer heart failure.”

Dr Rao adds that Rupayan had a complete checkup after a year to rule out organ rejection. “We also performed his coronary angiogram to check for blockage in the arteries. Once that was done, we gave him the clearance for the marathon,” he says.

Preparing for the marathon
“Training for the event was virtually seamless, as post-transplant patients are required to walk routinely as per medical protocol. I practiced four-kilometre power-walking on daily basis for 24mins. I had to stress myself just a little bit more, as my primary focus was to hold my breath and not lose it during the event,” recollects Rupayan.
He focussed on hydration since fluids provided him with strength. He ate 1/3 of his overall capacity but spaced out his meals by eating at regular intervals. “I usually eat less anyway and I stay away from junk,” he adds. Here’s a complete guide to training for a marathon.

Rupayan chose a cause like ‘Run for Martyrs’ in appreciation for the armed forces’ sacrifice and bravery. “It is God’s kindness, grace and judgement that I have this new life. It was incumbent on me to prove him right. My conscience could not hold me back from this best of opportunity in spite of my limitations and arguably high risk,” he says.

“I kept myself hydrated and was careful about not feeling breathless. I had my oximeter handy and most importantly I did not let myself feel like a heart patient while I am carrying my donor’s, super-healthy heart.
“On completing the run for my specified category I felt absolutely normal. I thank God and my Surgeon and his brigade for helping me feel normal just like everybody else,” he says with pride.

His family, who was understandably very apprehensive of his decision, gave into his resolve half-heartedly. But after seeing him successfully complete the marathon, they were awestruck. “They encourage me to prepare for more marathons and walkathons for every noble cause,” he quips.

Experience of a lifetime
Dr Rao takes pride in what Rupayan has achieved, “Life is 10 percent what happens to you and 90 percent how you react to it. He came to us with end-stage heart failure. He was courageous enough to undergo the transplant and once the transplant was done he got back to his regular life. He reacted boldly and is enjoying his life.”

To all those who wish to follow in Rupayan’s footsteps, he has a few words of wisdom: “Take small steps. Improve time-bound and target the impossible.” Dr Rao adds, “Transplant patients should take immunosuppressive drugs to prevent any rejection regularly, regular follow up and should be careful not to get an infection as they are on immunosuppressive drugs.”

“We transplantees are a kind of ‘Dead Man Walking’ tribe,” Rupayan quips. “I would suggest them to follow their hearts, chase your dreams, test your limits. Not everyone gets a second chance at a good life. So my personal philosophy today is to let go and let God take over!”

Image source: Rupayan Roy

Published: January 22, 2018 11:48 am

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