4th May 2008 - Bringing “Heart” to the New Jersey Marathon
On May 4, 2008, 13 adults who have had heart surgery
and four family members of heart patients (two spouses and two children)
from eight states will be meeting in Long Branch, New Jersey to participate
in the New Jersey Marathon. Nicknamed “Valve-O-Lenes”
and “Cardiac Athletes,” all the runners have met through
internet support groups for heart patients and many will be meeting
each in person for the first time. The eight states represented include
Illinois, Louisiana, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania,
and Virginia.
This gathering marks the third consecutive year of bringing together
fellow athletes to celebrate their recovery from heart surgery and
to trade experiences about what it’s like to endure and recover
both psychologically and physiologically from a life-threatening heart
condition.In 2006, five open heart patients, including this year’s
lead organizer Laura Fucci, ran as a five person relay team in the
KeyBank Vermont City Marathon in Burlington, Vermont. In 2007, ten
heart patients and two spouses formed three relay teams to participate
in the Roadrunner Marathon in Akron, Ohio.
Ms. Fucci, a 48 year old physical therapist from Mendham New Jersey,
is a Valve-O-Lene. In January 2005, Laura underwent open heart surgery
to replace her aortic valve. This year’s group features eight
heart valve patients, many of whom met through an internet support
group for heart patients known as ValveReplacement.Com. Founded in
1999 by Hank Eyring, members use the website to trade experiences
about their congenital heart defects, discuss life before and after
open heart surgery, and learn about various treatment options.
Ms. Fucci is being assisted in this year’s organizing efforts
by New Yorker Dave Tuttle, 55, who took up marathon running after
heavy smoking led to quadruple bypass at age 46. Dave joined the group
in 2007 through “Cardiac Athletes,” an internet support
group started by Lars Andrews, Chief Cardiac Physiologist at St. Mary’s
Hospital in Portsmouth, United Kingdom. Dave says for “years
I thought I was alone as far as running with a heart problem. It’s
meant the world to me to connect with other heart patients who have
overcome their fears to get out there and run.”
Dave’s appreciation of meeting other runners is echoed by Pam
Bonner from New Orleans, Louisiana. Pam believes that a spouse of
a heart patient faces his or her own set of fears and she recalls
how painful it was to watch her husband, Philip, a very competitive
marathon runner, deteriorate before surgery. She says life after surgery
brought a new set of emotions that ran the gamut from “admiration
for Philip’s commitment, sorrow that I just can’t make
his recovery happen immediately, and frustration when he won’t
take my advice. As his wife and running partner, don’t I always
know what’s best?”
Each year has led to new discoveries and new relationships. The 2008
band of runners features a brand new runner, Trish Benardo, who had
a pacemaker inserted in 2002. Trish, who resides in Holden Beach,
North Carolina, signed up for her first marathon relay “because
of all the friendships I have formed on the Cardiac Athletes website”.
Another newcomer to the group is Kevin Young from Illinois whose wife
Jocelyn will run the full marathon and whose two boys, ages 7 and
4, will participate in the Kids’ Races. A six-time Ironman triathlete,
Kevin underwent open heart surgery in June 2007 to replace his aortic
valve and was able to complete the Miami marathon 7 months later with
an impressive time of 3 hours and 36 minutes.
While all the runners feel uncomfortable being told that their story
is heroic or inspirational, they draw strength from each other’s
example. Among the most stirring stories this year is Kevin Carpenter,
a 47 year old information technology specialist from Richmond, Virginia.
In July 2007, while training for his fifth marathon on a treadmill
at the local gym, Kevin suffered a heart attack and a severe hematoma
to the brain from falling. After undergoing quintuple bypass, Kevin
is back to running and he plans on running the Richmond, Virginia
marathon with his cardiologist later this year.
According to Amy Verstappen of the Adult Congenital Heart Association,
heart defects are the most common birth defect. About one in 120 babies
are born with some kind of heart defect. All survivors of heart surgery
have an increased risk of developing additional heart problems and
many will require additional surgeries as they age. The United States
has a severe shortage of cardiac centers fully equipped to care for
children and adults living with complex heart defects and is in need
of a national patient registry which can be used to improve existing
guidelines for medical treatment and teaching heart patients how to
maintain an active lifestyle.