Innovative new procedure offers hope for heart transplant candidates at high risk for rejection

Innovation at AdventHealth is driven by one purpose: helping people heal in body, mind and spirit. That innovation provided a path to survival and a better, healthier, life for heart transplant candidate, Will Vogelman.

Will’s journey was about more than surviving though. It was about reclaiming strength, connection and the possibility of a future he feared he might not see. For months, he felt his body growing weaker.

“I could barely move,” he said. “I could barely keep my eyes open.”

“Now I’m able to stand up, walk, move around. I am leaps and bounds better.”

But Vogelman had high levels of antibodies that would likely attack a new heart and create a high risk of rejection.

The transplant team at AdventHealth Transplant Institute supported Will through some of the hardest days of his life and he became AdventHealth’s first patient for a new procedure called HALT, or Heart After Liver Transplant. HALT begins with a liver transplant to “reset” the body’s antibodies, creating a safer path for a heart transplant soon after. By transplanting the liver first, the team gives the new heart a greater chance to thrive and minimizes the chance of rejection. “Patients don't have to look on the internet for where they can leave Florida to go find first rate care,” said Dr. Phillip Wai, surgical director of pancreas transplant at AdventHealth Transplant Institute, and a liver transplant surgeon. “Families can stay close to home and still receive the advanced care they need.”

Dr. Ahmad Zeeshan, surgical director of the heart transplant program, said as one of few programs able to perform HALT in the U.S., this approach helps AdventHealth care for people who may have been told they had no other options. “We are able to care for more patients and able to care for patients who may not be helped at other places.”

The impact has been life-changing for Will Vogelman. “Now I’m able to stand up, walk, move around. I am leaps and bounds better,” he said. “I’ve been surviving and beating small-percentage odds my whole life. I couldn’t have asked for a better team. Every one of them has fought for me.”

Dr. Wai sees Will’s recovery as a reflection of the team’s deeper purpose. “It really focuses on how we try to think out of the box to make somebody feel whole.”

“We are very focused on bringing in innovative technologies in all fields to elevate care for our patients,” added Dr. Zeeshan.

AdventHealth’s first HALT procedure is medical innovation and also a reminder of what’s possible when experts come together with creativity, compassion and a shared mission of healing — offering patients like Will Vogelman not only more time, but more life.

There are more than 104,000 people waiting for a lifesaving organ transplant in the U.S.

Florida residents can sign up to become an organ donor in just a few minutes by visiting: Donate Life Florida. One person’s selfless gift can save eight lives.