Kerry triathlete urges people to get their hearts checked after his own shocking discovery

From the outside looking in, you would think that Den McCarthy was at peak health, such is the Tralee man’s passion for all things fitness, a hobby that he maintains through his regular outings with the Tralee Triathlon Club.

Simply put, Den, who is in his 50’s and who says he has never smoked or drank, is someone who is always on the move. Whether it is through running, cycling or swimming, he is always looking to push himself both physically and mentally.

Knowing all this, it was understandably a huge shock to both him and all those who know him when last month, he underwent what he assumed was a routine heart check up, only to then discover that shockingly, one of the arteries in his heart is 90 percent blocked.

It’s this reason that Den is now appealing to people of all ages to take the time to get themselves booked in for a full heart check up, if for nothing else than for peace of mind that everything is okay or to catch something early before it develops into a potentially fatal issue.

Speaking to The Kerryman this week, Den said that it was his boss who first advised to go get himself checked out. This, Den said, came about out of the fact that Den’s boss had friends who, like Den were keen runners and cyclists, but who had dropped dead of heart related issues that had never been noticed.

“For me, it was a case of ‘sure, I’ll go along’ and not thinking too much of it. I will admit that, probably being a man, it was almost a badge of honour that I hadn’t been to the doctor in five or six years. It wasn’t a case of burying my head in the sand, I just didn’t have any issues,” he said.

After getting his bloods done – his cholesterol level was a very healthy 4.4 – and passing both the echocardiogram and the electrocardiogram (ECG) with flying colours as well as his blood pressure being normal, Den said that he thought he was until the clear.

“Where I went down is on the stress test,” said Den, even though again on the surface, Den said this went off without a hitch.

“I felt that I did a very good stress test. It started off as walking on a treadmill and then they increased the speed and elevation until you’re running and you’re on it for around 20 minutes. You have to reach 80 percent of your max heart rate and I actually got up to 96 percent. I sat down and the heart was back down to normal within two or three minutes,” he said.

“It was only when the cardiologist came in and said there was an issue with the electrical charge on the left side – something called Left Bundle Branch Block (LBBB) – and that he wanted to get me in for an Angiogram. My initial thought was ‘what’s this all about?’ but I still went in quite relaxed and it’s a very straight forward procedure,” he continued.

When the results came back, Den said that he was not the only one surprised.

“The doctor came back with the results and I think even the nurses in the theatre were shocked to say that there was a 90 percent blockage,” he said.

Thankfully Den said that, apart from now having to go on medication for the rest of his life, he is not in any present danger and has not been recommended to make any major changes, meaning that he can still do what he loves to do with exercise.

“One of the nurses did say that only for me being as fit as I am, there was more of a chance that more of the arteries in my heart would have plaque build-up,” he said.

His main message to people, of all ages, is to make that appointment to see their doctor and make sure that everything is okay with their heart. Even if one person takes on board this advice and catches something early, then it will have been a major success.

“As someone in the triathlon club said to me, we go buy and buy new wetsuits, better gear, better wheels for the bike and all things like that but do we ever stop and think and say that we need to spend some money to actually get ourselves checked?”

“I’ve had people ring me asking if they go to their doctors, what do they ask for? I’m telling them to go in for a full heart check with a stress test and if you pass, well happy days, you can drive on but if they find something and if my video or my message helps just one person, that’s a major result,” he said.

Going on, Den said that children and teenagers from a young age should get a full heart check up before they get involved in sport.

“If they can get their hearts checked at a young age, you can prevent a tragedy like one that happened with the hurler Dillon Quirke [The 24-year-old hurler collapsed and died during a match in August 2022]. Let’s not just restrict this to people who are over 50. we should open up the discussion to young people too and tell them to go and make that appointment,” he continued.

Watch Den talking about his experience in depth in his video he shared on the Tralee Triathlon Club’s Facebook page.

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