A marathon process: running on new lungs
By Harold Lee
March 1, 2004 9:00 p.m.
Ted Ball was once unable to cross the street without running out
of breath. But this Saturday, the 61-year-old will tackle the Los
Angeles Marathon.
The 26.2-mile course has been on his mind since he received a
double lung transplant at the UCLA Medical Center in May 2002.
“I knew I was going to get better, but I had no concept
that I’d feel so amazingly good,” Ball said.
“(A marathon) is the highest line you can draw for
yourself.”
From a very young age, he battled asthma attacks and chronic
chest infections.
“The neighbors learned who we were because fire trucks
always came to our house,” he said.
Ball’s lung condition made him small and frail. When he
graduated high school, he was only 4 feet 10 inches tall and
weighed 60 pounds.
As a young boy, he was unable to participate in sports with his
athletic family members, but remained active by swimming and water
skiing.
“The thing that maintained me was that I had a strong
heart,” Ball said.
But Ball’s heart was straining, and his condition grew
progressively worse. Doctors told him in 1988 that he would need a
new set of lungs.
After eight months on the transplant waiting list, Ball received
a successful double lung transplant.
He was finally able to breathe without the help of the oxygen
tank he had carried around for the two years prior to the
surgery.
“He really has had a very nice response to the transplant,
as compared to other patients, who have had pneumonia and rejection
episodes,” said David J. Ross, Ball’s physician at
UCLA.
Ross is a seasoned marathon runner, having run in 17 marathons
in the past. But Saturday will mark the first time he has ever run
with a patient.
“Since he’s in such great condition, he’ll
probably leave me in the dust,” Ross said.
Ball continues to take a number of immunosuppressant drugs to
prevent his body from rejecting his transplanted lungs.
“It’s time-consuming, but the alternative is pretty
grim,” Ball said.
Less than a month after the transplant, Ball had already set the
marathon as his goal.
“Once you get healthy, you want to show it off,”
Ball said.
Jennifer, Ball’s wife of 28 years, encourages her
husband’s undertaking.
“I think it’s kind of ridiculous, but I understand
the impetus for doing it, so I’m supportive,” she
laughed.
Ball’s workout regimen consists of alternating walking and
jogging on a track or a treadmill. He runs a minimum of five miles
every time he exercises, and steadily increases the distance he
runs.
A month ago, Ball hit the 20-mile mark, even though he had
forgotten to bring water and was breaking in a new pair of shoes.
It was also raining.
Despite aching and shivering, Ball kept going.
“I told myself, “˜If I stop now, then I’m not
going to get to the car for a long time,'” Ball
said.
There is a significant impact on the immune system for most
marathon runners, said Ross, who is also the medical director for
the lung transplant program at the UCLA Medical Center.
But for transplant recipients, these risks are increased.
“(Ball) is on immunosuppression medication … so the
effect of the marathon may take its toll,” Ross said.
Since the surgery, Ball has been evaluated frequently and has
shown none of the major problems that sometimes affect lung
transplant patients.
“The fact that he has been training and he has been
dedicated and done very well from a physiological perspective makes
me more comfortable,” Ross said.
Though his physician has shown some concern, the people closest
to Ball are not as worried about how he will perform in
Saturday’s marathon.
“Ted’s always been pretty tough,” said
Jennifer, who is also a UCLA alumna.
“Even when he was on oxygen, he’s shown an
underlying toughness.”
Ball’s older brother, Jack, a triathlon coach at UC
Berkeley, provides running advice over the phone and is also
running the marathon with his brother.
“I’m excited,” Jack said. “I grew up
with a guy who could hardly breathe.”
Around the 20th mile, running becomes more difficult for many
marathon participants, a phenomenon known among runners as
“hitting the wall.” The brothers look forward to
overcoming this stage together.
“Luckily, we’ll have each other to push
ourselves,” Jack said.
