Walking Dead – The First Human Able to Survive Without a Heart OR a Pulse

According to the conventional medical definition Craig Lewis was dead: he had no heartbeat. However, he lived on for a couple months with NO pulse and NO heart. Thanks to an amazing medical invention they might just have to change the criteria of death. This story sounds like something straight out of the movie Repo Men or The Terminator, but that only shows that modern technology is catching up with science-fiction.

In 2011, 55-year-old Craig Lewis went into the operating room at the Texas Heart Institute in a coma-like state. He was suffering from a rare condition called amyloidosis that was causing his heart and other organs to fail. The doctors were out of traditional options to save his life and they only gave him 12-24 hours to live. Fortunately for Lewis he was at the very place where a revolutionary piece of technology had been developed. Dr. Billy Cohn and Dr. Bud Frazier from the Institute created something they call a “continuous flow” device that actually replaces the heart. It is essentially two turbines that pump blood throughout the body. It produces a continuous flow of blood, like a stream of water coming out of a faucet.

With the Lewis family’s consent the doctors performed surgery, removing his heart and replacing it with the new device. While this invention had been successfully tested on 70 cows, this was the first time it had been used on a human. It must have been an incredibly stressful procedure for the doctors who were hoping they could save him. Amazingly, Lewis was awake, sitting up, and speaking that very same day! He had a flat line on the EKG machine, no pulse or heartbeat, yet his circulatory system was working normally. “I listened and it was a hum, which was amazing,” his wife Linda said.

Lewis lived on for a 5 weeks because of the continuous flow device. Unfortunately the amyloidosis kept wearing down his other organs. When his liver and kidneys went into failure his family asked that the artificial heart be unplugged. Lewis and his family were thankful for the additional time the incredible invention had given him. It allowed them to say goodbye and made his passing less painful. Speaking about the device being tested on her husband, Linda Lewis said, “We knew [even] if it wasn’t a success for Craig, if they could get data that would help them, if it helps the next person, then you did good…You never know how much time you have, but it was worth it.”

In order for Dr. Cohn and Dr. Frazier to bring their artificial heart to the market, they will have to chose a final design, find a manufacturer and obtain FDA approval. Unlike the pulsating artificial hearts in development, Dr. Frazier says that their continuous flow device has never failed. Thanks to the courage of Craig Lewis and his family this remarkable technology is much closer to being mass-produced and saving more lives.

Watch the incredible video below about Mr. Lewis and his artificial heart!

Craig Lewis after the artificial heart was installed

Craig Lewis after the artificial heart was installed

The continuous flow artificial heart

The continuous flow artificial heart

X-ray showing Mr. Lewis's new heart

X-ray showing Mr. Lewis's new heart