Reuters: U.S.: Cheney older, waited longer than average for heart transplant

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Cheney older, waited longer than average for heart transplant Mar 25th 2012, 23:22 WASHINGTON | Sat Mar 24, 2012 8:09pm EDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Former Vice President Dick Cheney underwent a heart transplant on Saturday and is recovering in a Virginia hospital, a spokeswoman for Cheney said in an email. Cheney, 71, a Republican who served as vice president in the George W. Bush administration, has had a long history of heart trouble. The spokeswoman said Cheney was recovering in the intensive care unit of Inova Fairfax Hospital in Falls Church, Virginia, a suburb of Washington. The statement said Cheney and his family do not know the identity of the donor, but "they will be forever grateful for this lifesaving gift." Cheney, who has suffered five heart attacks, the first at age 37, had a heart pump implanted in 2010 to compensate for worsening congestive heart failure. He said after the operation that he was considering whether to seek a full heart transplant. Cheney had bypass surgery in 1988 and later two angioplasties. In 2001 he had a defibrillator implanted in his chest. During Cheney's eight years as vice president from 2001-2009, he wielded unprecedented power and pushed a "go it alone" world view that enraged his critics and dogged him long after he left public life. He was a strong advocate for the 2003 invasion of Iraq and was among the most outspoken of Bush administration officials warning of the danger from Iraq's suspected stockpile of weapons of mass destruction. No such weapons were found. Prior to becoming vice president, Cheney served as defense secretary in the George H. W. Bush administration and directed the U.S. military operation to expel Iraq's occupation of Kuwait in the first Gulf War. He also is a former congressman from Wyoming. (Reporting By Eric Beech; Editing by Xavier Briand) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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