Ben Askren’s wife Amy has revealed that the star has now undergone a double lung transplant just weeks after he was hospitalized due to suffering from severe pneumonia following a staph infection.
“We are so thankful to share that Ben has received a double lung transplant,” Amy wrote on Facebook.
“We are forever thankful to the donor and his family. This is the beginning of a new lifestyle for Ben, but every new day he has is a gift.
“It still doesn’t feel real that he was walking around completely healthy just 5 weeks ago. So much can change so quickly. Please keep Ben in your prayers that his body welcomes the new lungs as if they were his own.
“I am constantly in awe of all the people carrying us through right now. I can’t wait to tell Ben all about it.
“I’m hopeful that in [the] coming weeks Ben will be able to give the next update. But hopefully he will wait until the drugs wear off [smiley emoji].”
Needless to say the 40-year-old Askren’s operation was extremely serious and now has major implications for how he will live his life from this point forward.
Due to the fact that the body will naturally try to reject transplants, Askren will now have to take anti-rejection drugs for the rest of his life, which come with the down-side that they suppress the immune system, making him more susceptible to infections and the risk of other new conditions developing, along with other side effects.
The seriousness of the situation is made clear by the fact that studies have shown only around half of the people who undergo the procedure live for five years, though there are certainly cases of people living much longer.
The stats hopefully start to skew more in Askren’s favor given how relatively young and healthy he was prior to his recent illness, which isn’t the typical scenario for someone requiring such a transplant.
He also has the heart of a fighter, the mindset of a champion, and with the combat sports world united in support of him and his loving family by his side the hope is that he’ll now go on to have the best possible outcome from this life-threatening ordeal.
