The father-of-six may have had to say goodbye to his daughters and sons far too early if it wasn’t for his heart-saving surgery. Here’s what happened.
Back in 2012, Melvyn was touring in the play You’re Only Young Twice when he noticed intermittent chest pain.
Mistaking the sensation as indigestion, Melvyn continued to act his heart out on stage.
Until, that was, his heart troubles gave way to breathlessness. Melvyn could hardly walk 50 years without having to stop for a breather.
He knew something wasn’t right. Picking up on his suspicions, Melvyn booked an appointment with a health specialist.
Remembering back, he told the Mirror: “I knew that I had to take action.”
Melvyn admitted his doctor had previously detected a heart murmur, and a cardiologists told him he had “furring of the arteries”.
Three years prior to his breathlessness, he said the cardiologist classed his condition “as moderate, and something treatable with tablets”.
He continued: “But deep down I knew that, ultimately, I might need a bypass.”
Getting himself checked over in 2012, the specialist explained Melvyn was developing coronary heart disease.
What’s coronary heart disease?
The NHS notes that coronary heart disease is “a major cause of death in the UK and worldwide”.
The main symptoms of the condition are: chest pain, heart attacks and heart failure.
Other signs of the condition include heart palpitations and unusual breathlessness.
Coronary heart disease occurs when the heart’s blood supply is blocked by a build-up of fatty substances in the coronary arteries.
A build-up of fatty deposits in the arteries is known as atherosclerosis, and the fatty deposits are known as atheroma.
In order to save his life, Melvyn underwent a triple bypass – where veins were removed from his legs and put into his chest.
Melvyn commented: “To me, it sounded a disaster but [the specialist] said the bottom line was that if I did nothing, eventually I’d die.”
Coronary artery bypass graft (CABG)
The NHS explained this is the go-to surgery to treat coronary heart disease.
It diverts blood around narrowed or clogged arteries to improve blood flow and oxygen to the heart.
Melvyn underwent the heart-saving surgery on January 31, 2013, which has enabled him to live on to reach the age of 85.
If you’d like to reduce your risk of developing coronary heart disease, there are a few things you can do.
According to the NHS, losing any excess weight would be beneficial, as would refraining from a high-fat diet.
A major risk factor is smoking, so if you’re puffing away, you’re not doing yourself any favours.
For help to stop smoking today, contact your local stop smoking service.
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