Angioplasty Risks/Benefits

[Sassanach]

Hi, I had a CA back in May and was admitted for emergency treatment. During recovery when the cardiologist came to discuss what had happened he said I had two stents and damage to the left side of the heart but also there was a blocked artery on the right hand side which they didn't treat at the time but would review later. Six months later I'm still struggling with breathlessness on hills and stairs, they gave me a stress echo and have now said that unblocking the right artery may improve things though the breathlessness may also be down to the damage to the left side. It doesnt sound like a straight forward angioplasty as he said they need to enter through wrist and groin to approach the blockage from both directions and the operation would take about two hours. The situation I'm now in is having to decide if I want to have it done and take the obvious risks involved with the procedure in the knowledge that there may not be any, or only slight improvement?

I appreciate that in the end only I can make the decision but just wondering if anyone has had a similar situation. My gut feeling is I'm lucky to still be here so do I need to push it again with another risky procedure which may not bring any benefit?..I'm finding it a tough call

[shopman]

What a decision to have to make - do you have anyone to talk it over with? If not then there is always the BHF Helpline. I have always looked at things like this and always came to the same conclusion that the benefits always outweighed the risks and touch wood so far it has.

Please keep us up to date as to progress.

[Prada47]

Hi Sassanach

Welcome to the club !!

I have a blocked RCA which couldn't be bypassed during CABG surgery and it would need to be attempted to be opened through angioplasty. Like you it is possible high risk for what could be very little reward. Cardiologist would be willing to attempt unblocking should I have further problems with the LAD which has been bypassed and had stenting. Like you I was told it would need entry via wrist and groin at the same time, not sure if this is a commonly used technique for stenting or any other procedure?? Currently I am waiting to see how things progress with an increase in Medication. I also have LV damage from a previous Heart Attack Cardiologist thinks breathlessness is coming from LV damage as opposed to heart muscle not getting sufficient blood supply. Hope that makes some sense !!

best regards

[Sassanach in reply to Prada47]

HI Prada, yes makes perfect sense and sounds pretty much identical to my situation. One thing I didn't find clear following my meeting was what increased risks were of not having it done.. to me it's blocked so probably cant get any "more blocked" so can things deteriorate from where I am now?...I'm trying to contact them again clarify this

[stevejb1810]

Only you can decide if you want to take the risk but it’s a very small risk. Thousands of angioplasties are done every year in the NHS without any issues and if it helps your breathlessness it’s a win and if it doesn’t well, you are back where you started. You need to weigh up the potential benefit vs the potential risk and decide if the potential benefit is greater than the potential risk.

[Sassanach in reply to stevejb1810]

Hi Steve, thanks for reply. I think the way he described it to me it isn't a simple angioplasty. My previous stents were done just through the wrist, for this he says there needs to be two points of entry to approach the blockage from both sides? I appreciate the final call can only be made by me and it is the basic risk/benefit question which is causing me to have serious thoughts. He quoted a 100/1 risk for the procedure which for me as an engineer is pretty risky, I also feel extremely lucky to still be here so do I need to take another risk and push my luck further for what may be no benefit?. Again, I would never expect anyone here or in the medical profession to suggest what I should do but as with most things on here, it helps just to talk about it

[stevejb1810 in reply to Sassanach]

As someone who used to do risk assessments as part of daily job, I’m with you, odds of 100/1 don’t sound great - so, do you feel lucky 🤞😉