Ontario man hopes to become first heart transplant recipient to summit Mount Chimborazo
An Ontario man hopes to become the first heart transplant recipient to reach the summit of a peak in Ecuador.
When Dale Shippam, 71, of Thunder Bay, Ont. was brought to Toronto General Hospital 25 years ago, he feared he was going to die. He was diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy and needed a new heart.
"Every day when you go to sleep, you don't know if you're going to wake up," says Shippam. "It was very serious."
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
At one point, Shippam went into cardiac arrest.
"We were doing chest compressions in the elevator on our way into the Coronary Care unit. It was like something you might have seen on a TV show, but it truly happened," says Dr. Heather Ross.
And that was Ross's introduction to the patient who would one day become her partner in adventure.
Shippam got his new heart in 1999. Seven years later, in 2006, Ross and Shippam went to Antarctica, marking their first of 10 excursions they would take together.
They explored the North and South poles, biked to Mount Everest's base camp, conquered one of the world's most challenging trails - the Snowman trek in Bhutan - and more.
They will climb Mount Chimborazo during their upcoming journey to Ecuador. Its position along the equator makes it the closest point to the sun on Earth.
During this trek, Ross and Shippam will have to climb during the night hours, in part because the heat of the sun during the day makes the snow soft and prone to avalanches.
How does a 71-year-old man with a heart transplant manage such a high-altitude climb? With good training, good equipment and good teammates, say Shippam and Ross.
With this trip to Ecuador, Shippam is trying to become the first heart transplant recipient to reach an altitude of 6,310 metres.
Like their other excursions, the climb is part of Test Your Limits, an organization to raise awareness and funds for cardiac research.
Ross, who heads the Department of Cardiology at the University Health Network, says they've raised about 4 million dollars over the years for pioneering technology to help cardiac patients.
In 2006, when Health Canada had approved but not yet issued funding for mechanical hearts, Test Your Limits helped purchase the device for patients.
"Since that time, Test Your Limits continued to fund innovative and disruptive technologies that can sometimes have difficulties getting traditional funding," says Ross.
This year's climb aims to fund the development of wearable, artificial intelligence-driven devices that can predict cardiopulmonary performance, especially in patients with heart failure.
She points to Shippam as evidence of the progress that research and technology can lead to.
"Dale is just an incredible human, right?" she says. "But it also speaks to the wonders of science."
As for Shippam, his message is simple: "Organ donation works. That's what Test Your Limits is all about."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Trump confronts repeated boos during raucous Libertarian convention speech
Donald Trump was booed repeatedly while addressing Saturday night’s Libertarian Party National Convention.
This type of screen time has the worst effect on kids: experts
According to some experts, there is one type of screen time that is continuously excessive, and it's having a severe effect on our children.
Family of toddler found dead at small-town Ont. daycare no closer to answers after year of investigation
A year has passed since two-year-old Vienna Irwin was found on the property of a home-based daycare in small-town Ontario, but her family says they are no closer to answers of what happened that day.
Grayson Murray, two-time PGA Tour winner, dead at 30
Two-time PGA Tour winner Grayson Murray died Saturday morning at age 30, one day after he withdrew from the Charles Schwab Cup Challenge at Colonial.
Humboldt Broncos crash victims and families react to decision to deport truck driver
The family of one of the victims of the Humboldt Broncos bus crash in 2018 says they are 'thankful' for a decision by a Calgary immigration board to deport the driver of the truck involved.
Fatal plane crash reported near Squamish, B.C.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada has confirmed it is working with local Mounties and the BC Coroners Service after a plane crash near Squamish, B.C. Friday night.
'God forgives but we don’t': Loud outburst from stabbing victim’s family during sentencing hearing
An emotional outburst in a London, Ont. courtroom Friday disrupted the sentencing hearing of a woman who pleaded guilty for her part in the death of 29-year-old Mohammed Abdallah.
Three dead after vehicle plunged down a 100-foot embankment in Shediac, N.B.
Three people have died after a vehicle veered off the road in Shediac N.B., Friday morning.
Appeal denied for Edmonton soldier accused of trying to kill her 3 children
An Edmonton woman found guilty of trying to kill her three children has been denied an appeal.