| Cystic
Fibrosis Patient Turns Hardship into Pride
by Elizabeth Crumpler
As any other Ironman athlete, 34-year-old
Scott Johnson spends hours each day training
for the strenuous Ironman triathlon, which
includes a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike
ride and a 26.2-mile run. However, Johnson
is not a typical Ironman athlete. Johnson
suffers from cystic fibrosis, a genetic lung
disease affecting more than
30,000 Americans.
People with cystic fibrosis carry a defective
gene that causes the body to produce abnormally
thick mucus that clogs the lungs and leads
to life-threatening lung infections.
In 2001, Johnson was hospitalized at UNC
Hospitals with a serious case of bacterial
pneumonia and would have died if it were
not for the emergency double-lung transplant
he received there.
Since his lung transplant, Johnson has competed
in 13 triathlons, and this March,
he will attempt Ironman New Zealand, a race
known for bringing out only the
toughest of athletes. He is believed
to be the first ever lung transplant patient
to attempt an
Ironman triathlon.
Johnson’s transplant surgeon, Dr.
Frank Detterbeck, is not surprised by Johnson’s accomplishments and says
he believes they speak more about Johnson’s
character than his medical recovery.
“You can’t get through a competition
like this without a lot of effort, and a
lot of training, and a lot of motivation,” Detterbeck
said. “You need more than just good
lungs, and I think that speaks very highly
of him.”
Although Johnson’s desire to compete
in triathlons began as a determination to
fulfill his own goals, he says he now does
triathlons to serve as an inspiration to
other cystic fibrosis patients worldwide.
“Over the years that I’ve been
doing these, it’s kind of evolved into,
you know—I run these races for the
people that are sitting in the hospitals,
and the people who are on IVs and oxygen,” Johnson
said.
For many cystic fibrosis sufferers, Johnson’s
accomplishments represent the promise of
a normal life.
To keep track of Johnson’s Ironman
New Zealand results or find out more about
the race, log on to the Ironman
web site.
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