Kenneth Ray Miller
“I woke up on my 58th birthday to a new heart, a new kidney…a new lease on life.”
On May 31, Ken Miller received the gift of life through a first-in-Michigan beating-heart transplant and a kidney transplant.
The procedure is a new advancement with only 70 beating-heart transplants performed so far.
Traditionally, a deceased organ donor’s heart is removed and transported on ice to the location of a heart transplant, which limits distance and viability – and decreases the availability of organs to the patients waiting for a transplant.
The beating-heart or “heart in a box” transplant procedure instead keeps the donor heart pumping while it is in transit.
The procedure keeps the donor heart healthier, which reduces the odds of post-transplant complications such as strokes and damage to other organs.
Ken was a unique candidate for the procedure because cardiac damage had caused his heart to grow larger, which left more room for surgeons to work.
He experienced a heart attack in 2013 and had to retire from his career – but Ken says he never gave up hope of a healthier and brighter future. That hope is now beating in his chest.
“I’m excited to go home and relax and get back to normal — to see my children and grandchildren, to sit and play my guitar again. I’m so grateful to these doctors to be able to say that,” he said.
“I think it’s simply a miracle.”
Ken is fundraising with Help Hope Live for post-transplant medical costs not fully covered by insurance.
Written by Emily Progin
