Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: June 29, 2025
In 2020, Hannah Earls underwent a transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) to treat her severe aortic stenosis. For five years, Hannah lived a stable and fulfilling life. But in 2025, troubling symptoms returned — fluid retention and high blood pressure signaled that something was wrong.
A Computed Tomography (CT) scan revealed a devastating diagnosis: Hannah’s TAVR valve had collapsed inside an artery, severely restricting blood flow. Sadly, Hannah’s local medical team in North Carolina deemed the case too risky to operate on. The only option they offered Hannah was palliative care.
On April 12, 2025… Refusing to accept that outcome, Hannah’s daughter, Sheila Lewis, contacted me in a last effort to save her mom. I recommended that Sheila contact a leading heart center that specializes in complex valve cases.
Following my advice, Sheila connected with Melanie Janka, a valve coordinator at Cleveland Clinic. Melanie, works directly with Dr. Per Wierup, a world-renowned heart surgeon. Without hesitation, Sheila and Hannah traveled to Cleveland for an urgent evaluation.
Thankfully… On May 15, 2025, Sheila wrote to me with a powerful update. Sheila stated, “Dr. Wierup not only confirmed how sick my mother was but also how close she was to dying. He said if we had waited just a few more days, she would not have survived. Dr. Wierup performed a TAVR explant, replaced the valve, repaired two more valves, and also repaired two arteries.”
Ready for this?
Just two days after surgery, Hannah was feeling dramatically better. She could breathe normally again. Her atrial fibrillation had resolved and she no longer required blood pressure medication — a stunning turnaround from what had seemed like the end.
Overwhelmed with gratitude, Sheila shared her emotions in an email to me: “I have been overjoyed and filled with emotions. My mom is so happy.”
You should also that the genetics of heart valve disease have been passed down from Hannah to Sheila. It turns out that Sheila also has aortic stenosis. She wrote to me, “As an aortic stenosis patient myself who is in the waiting room, I will get my valve fixed at Cleveland Clinic in the future.”
Thanks to the dedication of Dr. Wierup and the team at Cleveland Clinic — and the power of advocacy, community, and expert care — Hannah’s story is now one of renewed hope, healing, and life.
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Keep on tickin!
Adam
