The First U.S. Patient

Lois_SpillerIn early 2000, Lois Spiller, a retired financial analyst, was 52 years old, her heart was enlarged, and she was suffering from cardiomyopathy. Ms. Spiller became the first participant in the U.S. clinical trial of the Jarvik 2000 FlowMaker®.

She received the implanted assist device at the Texas Heart Institute in Houston, Texas. Seventy-nine days later, the device was explanted when a donor heart was found. Ms. Spiller survived the heart transplant operation and resumed a normal life.

In the years following Ms. Spiller’s operation, many other leading medical institutions throughout the country have performed numerous similar operations. (Photo of Lois Spiller courtesy of Texas Heart Institute.)