Press Release:

Vanessa Cirillo received the Total Artificial Heart on Aug. 10, 2007. She was transplanted 106 days later, on Nov. 24, 2007, two days after Thanksgiving.

TUCSON, Ariz. – Nov. 18, 2009 – On Nov. 21, 30-year-old Vanessa Cirillo will celebrate her second anniversary of being bridged to heart transplant with the SynCardia temporary CardioWest™ Total Artificial Heart by riding in the 2009 El Tour de Tucson cycling race. She will ride as a member of Team SynCardia, alongside the world-renowned cardiothoracic surgeon that saved her life, Dr. Jack Copeland.

“I think the bike race is a great way to celebrate my new beginning,” said Cirillo. “You need to go through struggles and learn lessons to become a better person. Once you have that strength, you can give more to others. This race and helping raise awareness about organ donation allows me to do that.”

Cirillo suffered a heart attack in 2000, which developed into cardiomyopathy over the next seven years. In August 2007, Cirillo’s heart was no longer pumping enough blood to sustain her body. She was flown from a Las Vegas hospital to University Medical Center in Tucson, Arizona, and was implanted with the Total Artificial Heart the following day. She was transplanted 106 days later, two days after Thanksgiving.

Total Artificial Heart recipient Vanessa Cirillo is celebrating her second anniversary with her donor heart by riding in El Tour de Tucson with Team SynCardia.

After being discharged from the hospital with her new donor heart, Cirillo began volunteering with the Donor Network of Arizona. She, along with other transplant recipients and families of organ donors, provide information, answer questions and dispel myths about organ donation.

"Since I was little, I always knew I wanted to help people,” said Cirillo. “My experience being bridged-to-transplant with the Total Artificial Heart has lit the path in front of me.”

El Tour de Tucson will be Cirillo’s first cycling race. Her parents, Barbara and Umberto, are traveling from their home in Florida to cheer her on. Her sister Erica, who lives in Tucson, plans to throw a “Team Vanessa” party before the race.

Cirillo will race alongside other members of Team SynCardia, including SynCardia co-founders, Dr. Copeland and Dr. Marvin Slepian, as well as fellow Total Artificial Heart recipient and transplant games gold medalist, Bill Wohl.

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About the SynCardia temporary Total Artificial Heart
SynCardia Systems, Inc. (Tucson, AZ) is the privately-held manufacturer of the world's first and only FDA, Health Canada and CE approved Total Artificial Heart. Originally used as a permanent replacement heart, SynCardia's Total Artificial Heart is currently approved as a bridge to transplant for people dying from end-stage biventricular heart failure. There have been more than 950 implants of the Total Artificial Heart, accounting for more than 230 patient years of life.

Similar to a heart transplant, SynCardia's Total Artificial Heart replaces both failing heart ventricles and the four heart valves, eliminating the symptoms and source of end-stage biventricular failure. Unlike a donor heart, the Total Artificial Heart is immediately available at SynCardia Certified Centers and does not require expensive anti-rejection medication, which can cause subsequent complications. It is the only device that provides immediate, safe blood flow of up to 9.5 liters per minute through both ventricles. This high volume of safe blood flow helps speed the recovery of vital organs, helping make the patient a better transplant candidate.

SynCardia Ranked #20 Among World's 50 Most Innovative Companies
In March 2011, Fast Company magazine ranked SynCardia #20 in its annual list of the "World's 50 Most Innovative Companies" for "giving mobility to artificial heart recipients." Weighing 13.5 pounds, SynCardia's Freedom® portable driver is the world's first wearable driver designed to power the Total Artificial Heart both inside and outside the hospital. The Freedom driver is CE approved for use in Europe and undergoing an FDA-approved Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) clinical study in the U.S.

For additional information, please visit: http://www.syncardia.com
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Media Contact:
Don Isaacs
Vice President of Communications
SynCardia Systems, Inc.
Cell: (520) 955-0660