Patient Stories - Heart Failure & Transplant Program
Russ Gipson, age 57
Sacramento, Calif.
Heart Transplant Recipient
Date: June 14, 1995
After a history of coronary artery disease, cardiac arrests and bypass operations, Russ Gipson's cardiologist told him in April 1995 that he needed a new heart to survive. The triple and quintuple bypass surgeries that Russ had undergone in the years prior had not been effective long-term and Russ was diagnosed with congestive heart failure.
After learning of the need for a transplant, Russ and his wife, Carol, were referred to Dr. Haeusslein and the heart team at California Pacific Medical Center for an evaluation. Although Russ was on a heart pump, the team performed as much of the heart evaluation as possible and determined that he was a candidate for transplantation. Russ' name was added to the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) waiting list in April 1995 and he was sent back to Sacramento to wait for a new heart.
Just two months later, Russ and Carol received a call that a heart was available, and they rushed to San Francisco for the transplant surgery. The June 14 operation went smoothly and Carol describes Russ' recovery as "absolutely amazing."
"His recovery after the transplant was remarkable compared to that following his bypass operations," says Carol. "After the first bypass, Russ lost a week of memory and after his second, he couldn't remember anything for two weeks. Following the transplant, though, he was alert enough to acknowledge his family within two hours of the surgery and walking around his room two days later. You could see a difference in Russ' color and complexion-he looked more alive than he had in some time."
For two months following his transplant, Russ and Carol lived in a patient apartment across the street from the Medical Center. They had a scare when, at two weeks following his surgery, Russ went into severe rejection and was given massive doses of prednisone, an anti-rejection medication. Because the prednisone didn't work for Russ' case, he underwent 10 days of radiation therapy to stop the rejection and was monitored for the next month, while he stayed nearby the hospital.
"The first year after the transplant was the toughest," recalls Carol. "Things kept happening that we knew may arise, but were still hard to deal with. Russ developed diabetes two months following surgery and also had a case of the shingles. Throughout it, though, we knew we were well taken care of because of the team at California Pacific."
"Those people are the best in the world," says Carol when thinking about the heart team. "Dr. Haeusslein is an amazing man-he always knows who you are and asks about your family. And Dolores, the nurse coordinator, even remembers our grandkids and asks about them. They genuinely want to know what's going on in your life, and that warmth and compassion, plus their expertise, makes you confident in their abilities. Most important, Russ feels confident that he is always going to get the best of care from them and that he doesn't have to question their answers."
Today, more than five years since Russ' transplant, he and Carol both agree that they would advocate transplantation in a heartbeat. "Our view is that you do whatever you can to stay alive until something better develops," says Carol. "We're very positive about the experience and have also become involved in encouraging donation because it made such a difference to our lives."