Jim Swallows, 53, thought he was in good health until he suffered a heart attack and then a series of life-threatening ailments that followed due to a little-known deadly allergy.
“It was a long, grueling time of my life,“ said Swallows. “From blood clots to nasal bleeding, and numerous times in and out of the hospital… I didn’t know if I was going to live. But after they recognized the allergy I had to heparin, it all seemed to turn around.”
Fortunately for Swallows, he was being treated at Florida Hospital, where a major research project is underway to help identify patients who suffer from this deadly allergy. Just recently, the Florida Hospital Cancer Institute (FHCI) Research Laboratories were awarded a $120,000 grant by the American Heart Association, Florida affiliate, to further the research.
Heparin allergy, called Heparin-Induced Thrombocytopenia - or HIT - affects approximately 120,000 patients a year. “This research grant will be used to help better understand the ways that heparin-related antibodies might cause thrombosis (the cause of limb loss and death),” said Dr. John Francis, Director of the Florida Hospital Center for Thrombosis and Hemostasis. “The ultimate goal is to gain an understanding of which HIT patients need the most aggressive therapy to help prevent death or the loss of a limb.”
More than 12 million patients a year receive the anti blood-clotting drug “heparin” during open heart or other surgical procedures. However, some of these patients can develop an allergy to the drug, which can result in loss of limb or even life.
“This is such a great opportunity to be able to fund research right here in our own community. Research is the key to helping the American Heart Association reach its mission of reducing disability and death from cardiovascular diseases and stroke. This grant allows us to work closely with Florida Hospital and impact the lives of heart disease patients in Central Florida,” added Wayne Rich, President of the American Heart Association Metro Orlando Community Advisory Board.
The Clinical and Research Laboratories of the Florida Hospital Cancer Institute were founded in 1994. Today, this unique facility combines advanced clinical testing services with cutting edge research in the areas of hemostasis, thrombosis and cancer. For more information, visit www.fhci-labs.com.
Since 1924 the American Heart Association has helped protect people of all ages and ethnicities from the ravages of heart disease and stroke. These diseases, the nation’s No. 1 and No. 3 killers, claim more than 930,000 American lives a year. The association invested more than $348 million in fiscal year 2002-03 for research, professional and public education, and advocacy so people across America can live stronger, longer lives.
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