“Become an organ donor. My life depended on it!”
If you happen to be riding along the Delaware Canal near Yardley or the back roads of Bucks County, you might pass a cyclist named Bill. He's a regular there. And, unless you look closely at his special ordered, anatomically correct heart cycling jersey, you likely won't notice anything different about him. But Bill's story is truly inspirational and certainly worth telling.
Family Ties
It all started more than 20 years ago when he collapsed in the Orlando airport on the way home from a vacation with his family. Bill was a young, healthy father of one which made his condition puzzling. That is until he told the doctor that his brother, who had been diagnosed with hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy, had died at age 27.
A red flag went up. Bill was diagnosed with a variation of this condition called familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, an inherited condition where the cells in the heart muscle become enlarged, changing the structure and function of the heart. Bill's heart was slowly failing him, but he found his way to Penn Medicine, where he has been on this journey ever since.
Bill's Turning Point
One Christmas, Bill was visiting his parents and he couldn't even walk the short distance from the car to their house. He felt like he had just climbed Mount Everest. After heading home and not feeling any better, he made an appointment with his electrophysiologist, David Lin, MD. Dr. Lin's assessment was that Bill's heart was beginning to fail and he was escalated from the arrhythmia team to the heart failure team.
That's when Anjali Owens, MD seamlessly took over his care. Working with familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy patients, she knew the effects the condition has on the heart. Initially, a number of benchmark tests were performed to assess the heart function and through these tests he was monitored regularly.
After a year of appointments with Dr. Owens, and a year of being on a roller coaster where Bill just did not feel himself, Bill headed into the city for what he thought was just another appointment. But this one turned out to be a milestone, one that was hard for Bill to swallow. It was at this appointment that Dr. Owens sat Bill down and said to him: "This is serious. It is time to talk about a transplant."
Taking the Next Step
Immediately the pre-transplant team jumped into action. Dr. Owens told him what to expect and walked him through the process so that he wouldn't be caught off guard. It was like a well-oiled machine, but one filled with compassion and empathy that Bill has never forgotten. Nurse practitioner Nicole Hornsby took Bill through a series of educational sessions and testing where he learned more about the process.
Bill was put on the transplant list and less than three months later, he got a call that he will never forget (and one that he still has a recording of). It was just after midnight and Nicki, a nurse at Penn said to him, "Mr. Soloway, it's Nicki with heart transplant. I'm calling you about a potential heart donor, and I need you to come to the hospital right away." Immediately, Bill and his fiancée Kathy were on I-95 South, straight into Center City.
Hours later, as Bill waited in the pre-op area, he met his heart transplant surgeon Pavan Atluri, MD for the first time. Little did Dr. Atluri know that while Bill was waiting to be prepped, he had done some research on his surgeon and found that they had something in common: they were both Eagle Scouts. So when Dr. Atluri came in and shook his hand, Bill offered his left instead. Immediately, Dr. Atluri noticed the old scout tradition and proceeded with the left handed shake stating, "I guess you did your research on me." It was the start of a relationship filled with an innate trust that Bill cherishes to this day. This was the calming moment in a whirlwind of emotion.
Honoring His Donor
During a hospital stay, a woman named Janet Dennis came into Bill's room and showed him an album filled with pictures from past Transplant Games, a biennial gathering of transplant recipients, living donors, caregivers, family members and more who come together to celebrate life. At the time, Bill brushed it off, thinking "Why am I even seeing this? It doesn't have anything to do with me." Three years later, the night after his transplant surgery, as Bill was restless in his hospital bed, that memory came back to him. Bill was ready. The next morning, he called Kathy and said, "I'm doing this. Next year, I will be in the Transplant Games."
Ten weeks after his transplant, Bill was back on his bike. Every morning, he was off the couch and out of bed. Bill's determination to participate in the Games and honor his donor was just the motivation he needed to get back into cycling and back on his feet.
Bill competed in both the 5K and 20K rides. He worked hard to prepare not only for the physical challenge, but also for the emotional journey that the Transplant Games entails. Bill received the Gift of Life. And there isn't anyone more honored, with a stronger desire to give back to the community.
"You have one life to live and eight lives to give. Become an organ donor. My life depended on it!" - Bill Soloway