Sacramento man offers hope to others with heart pump

SACRAMENTO – No doubt, Charlie R. Shade’s “heart” is in the right place.
The 79-year-old Sacramento man has been sharing his personal journey living with a heart pump in hopes of helping other patients and their families.
Shade is the oldest person to have ever received a Thoratec HeartMate II Left Ventricular Assist Device at Hershey – at age 77 - and was part of the two-year landmark trial for the device, his doctor confirmed.  
“He’s a remarkable man,” said his physician, Dr. John P. Boehmer, Professor of Medicine and Medical Director of the Heart Failure Program at Hershey Medical Center.
Since February is American Heart Month, Shade recently relayed how his life has been changed by the mechanical circulatory support system implanted in his chest two years ago. 
“I feel wonderful now,” said Shade. 
But that wasn’t the case on Dec. 23, 2007.  Shade’s prior heart problems seemed to be getting the best of him.
“I just felt terrible.  I had no appetite.  I said I’d never make it to Christmas,” he said.
Years before, at age 45, Shade had triple bypass surgery when he had artery blockages of 90-, 70- and 30-percent. Over the next few decades, Shade took medications and also had a pacemaker and a cardiac defibrillator inserted.  He worked for 39 years in printing at the New Cumberland Army Depot, before retiring in 1989. He was managing his heart failure fairly well, though, until December of 2007, when his health quickly declined and he withered to 120 pounds and his body became filled with fluid.  Shade became so weak that hospice home care was called in, and the family began facing the reality that a funeral may soon follow.
“It was pretty clear that Charlie was going to die without us doing anything,” Dr. Boehmer said.
On Jan. 23, 2008, Shade underwent life-saving surgery and the HeartMate II LVAD was installed as a last resort.
After a 9-week recovery period, Shade said he slowly began to feel that he was getting his life back.  Two years later, he now weighs 170-pounds, and is able to go shopping, walking, and traveling.
According to the Thoratec website, www.thoratec.com, the device is implanted alongside a patient’s native heart and takes over the pumping ability of the weakened heart’s left ventricle.
A cord, or cable, exits Shade’s skin at the right of his abdomen, where it can be attached to its battery power source, Shade explained.  Shade wears two batteries in a holster on either side of his body which help to power the system, and wears a system controller at his waist.  The batteries last about 3- to 4-hours, before needing replaced with recharged batteries. At night, Shade plugs into a special unit that runs the pump, records data, and also re-charges the unused batteries at the bottom of the unit.  In March, Shade is hoping he will be able to use a lighter battery option, which can provide 10- to 12-hours of service at a time.   He’s adjusted well. 
“I think medically, he had the right treatment for the right problem,” Dr. Boehmer said.  “He had a lot of help from his wife, and great family support, and a good attitude.”
For Shade, part of that healing process has been to speak frankly with other patients who may be potential candidates for the heart pump.  Shade has opened his doors to patients interested in seeing his daily life at home, and has also visited patients in the hospital facing similar circumstances.
“It’s frightening when you’re facing something like this,” said his wife, Carol.  “You need a support system.  We wanted to do this, because we didn’t want another person to be so scared.  If you can talk to someone else, it helps,” she said.
The FDA approved the pump Jan. 20, 2010, for what’s known as destination therapy (DT), or long-term support for patients ineligible for cardiac transplantation. The HeartMate II was previously approved in April 2008 for Bridge-to-Transplantation (BTT) treatment, for patients awaiting heart transplants. 
Shade visits Hershey about once a month, so data can be recorded and his health monitored.  He also signed a 14-page permission form to allow doctors to recover the mechanical pump from his body after he dies, so that they can study how the device worked over the years.  Again, in hopes of assisting others.
“They said he’s a cat with nine lives. . . that can’t hear,” Carol Shade said of how her husband’s medical staff cheerfully describes him.
Charlie Shade is looking forward to his 80th birthday in July.  The Shades have three children, Melanie Yeager, of Millersburg; Susan Kashmere, of Harrisburg; and Scott Shade, of New Cumberland; and four grandchildren.
Anyone with any questions about Shade’s experience with his heart pump is welcome to call his home at 570-682-3694.
For more information, visit the website www.thoratec.com.

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