Hello

[Ruder1]

Hi I'm Ruder. Had a heart transplant in 2013 after 15 years of familial dilated cardiomyopathy. I am doing great and just completed a 3 week holiday in the US.

[MichaelJH Heart Star]

Hello and welcome to the forum! That sounds great. There are members of the Harefield Hamsters (all transplant patients) who have been living with their new heart for over 35 years! With that ingredient luck you should be enjoying holidays for decades to come.

[laura_dropstitch Heart Star]

Welcome Ruder I'm sure lots of transplant candidates will be glad to hear about your experiences!

[Glasspainter]

May I ask which insurance company you used for your trip abroad and was it a reasonable price?

[Ruder1 in reply to Glasspainter]

After a lot of comparisons I ended up using SAGA. There were cheaper ones but they didn't give the same coverage. I wanted to make sure there was enough cover to get me back if things went wrong. Worth noting I have co-morbidities.

[Glasspainter]

May i ask what the price was approximately? I would want a yearly multi trip cover worldwide.

[Ruder1 in reply to Glasspainter]

It was a 3 week trip - £1200

[Dockdog]

Hi Ruder, So good to read your upbeat message for all those who face or have faced serious heart ops and transplants. Thank you because so many , me included, will have gone through all the nagging worries and concerns while being diagnosed and treated before the surgical work. There comes the point when you have to put your trust in the surgeons and their team and once you have achieved that you are a long way to making a good recovery. I am just about to go on my first overseas holiday in several years, such a good feeling and looking forwards not backwards.

[Ruder1 in reply to Dockdog]

Very good It's all determination and positive thinking . Enjoy your trip..

[Fortepiano]

Dear Ruder

Lovely to read this post. My husband had a transplant in 2012 again after 15 years dilated cardiomyopathy. He also is doing very well. We owe so much to his transplant team and donor.

When I saw about your USA holiday I hoped you had found a source of affordable insurance but no! It is frustrating since my husband is very fit, loves walking, and hasn't been in hospital once since his transplant. He travels abroad quite a lot but we depend on the European Health Card.

I hope you had a wonderful holiday.

All the best

[pablojack]

just read your post. Congratulations and best wishes for the future. This must be a relief and a challenge though heart transplants appear to be very successful nowadays,

As someone who ha DCM myself I am encouraged that you managed 15 years before the transplant. This appears to be a lot better than most of the prognosis you see on line.