Patient Story

Meet: Chuck Besen

• Age: 45 (at implant)
• Diagnosis: Valvular cardiomyopathy
• SynCardia Total Artificial Heart implant date: Oct. 22, 2008
• Transplant date: March 27, 2009
• Time on SynCardia's Total Artificial Heart: 156 days
• Residence: Las Vegas, Nevada
• Hospital: University Medical Center
• Surgeon: Dr. Jack Copeland

Less Than a 10% Chance of Survival

On Oct. 20, 2008, I checked into Desert Springs Hospital in Las Vegas, Nevada. I was undergoing a routine aortic heart valve replacement because mine wasn’t closing properly. I chose to do a bovine valve so that I wouldn’t have to live on blood thinners for the rest of my life. However, after my doctors replaced the valve, my heart wouldn’t start.

The doctors put me on a Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) and started looking for other hospitals I could go to because Desert Springs doesn’t do transplants. The LVAD was too weak to keep me alive. My organs were all shutting down one by one and I had slipped into a coma.

“The doctors said if the LVAD didn’t improve Chuck’s heart function in 6 to 8 hours, he’d probably only have 48 hours to live. Most hospitals wouldn’t accept him as a patient because he was so sick. They gave Chuck less than a 10% chance of survival.”       – Jennifer Hokanson, Chuck’s fiancée

Flown by Air Ambulance to Tucson

I wasn’t prepared for any of this. I didn’t have any history of heart illness. I had expected to be in surgery for five hours, in the hospital for five days and then out of work for five weeks while I recovered.

I had no Plan B. I know most hospitals would not have taken a patient with a 10% chance to live. By the grace of God I ended up being flown by air ambulance to University Medical Center in Tucson, Arizona.

The next day, Dr. Jack Copeland and his team removed the LVAD and implanted the SynCardia temporary Total Artificial Heart.

Waking Up Without a Heart

I didn’t come out of the coma until a month later. When I awoke, I discovered I was in Tucson without a heart. I knew something had gone horribly wrong because my 9-month-old son had gone through a big growth spurt and my mom, who lives in New York, was sitting on my hospital bed. There were a bunch of photos on the wall of my friends and family too, because the doctors had warned them that if I came out of the coma, I might suffer from amnesia.

Dual Heart & Kidney Transplant

With the Total Artificial Heart, my organs started coming back and I was going to the gym 2-3 times a week. My liver came back first. All my organs eventually came back except for my kidneys.

The doctors put me on the waiting list for both a heart and kidney transplant. A little more than a month later, on March 27, 2009, I received my donor heart transplant.

An hour after the surgery, Dr. Copeland was surprised to see me sitting up in my ICU bed writing notes to Jennifer. Six hours later, I underwent a second transplant surgery, this time for a kidney.

Heading Home

I was discharged from the hospital with my new heart and kidney on April 10, 2009, just in time for me and Jennifer to celebrate Dylan’s first Easter at home. We were renting a house in Tucson because I still needed to go to the hospital 3-4 times a week for biopsies and other tests.

My friends and employer in Las Vegas held several fundraisers to help support us in Tucson. We moved back to Las Vegas on Aug. 1, 2009. I was flying down to Tucson every two weeks to see my doctors until October. Now, I only have to fly down there once a month for my heart biopsy.

Today, I just thank God I’m alive. The Total Artificial Heart not only saved my life, but allowed me to get strong enough to undergo my dual transplant.

“Without the Total Artificial Heart, there is no doubt in my mind that we wouldn’t be sitting here sharing our story today.”    
– Jennifer Hokanson, Chuck’s fiancée