Second wind

PALMER — Troy Chapman is 25, going on 37. He has a new bicycle thanks to a generous Palmer merchant. He has new lungs to ride that bike because of Dan Green, someone even more generous.

Given the averages, Chapman should be dead now; probably before he could have a beer at a pub.

He has cystic fibrosis, an incurable disease that riddles the lungs and digestive system.

In the past, children diagnosed with cystic fibrosis rarely lived to see their 21st birthday, Chapman said. Now, with improved treatments and a better understanding of the disease, the life expectancy is 37.4 years.

One of the treatments credited with this improvement is a double lung transplant. New lungs help the patient live healthier for longer, but waiting as long as possible for the procedure increases its success rate, Chapman said.

“I made it to 23 and then took a real dive,” Chapman said. “I spent most of 23 and 24 at Providence.”

It was decided he could wait no longer for a lung transplant. Doctors qualified to do the procedure are in such a limited supply, cases in Alaska are referred to the hospital at the University of Washington. Preparations began to move to Tacoma when Chapman tripped over a huge stumbling block.

In Alaska, Medicaid did not cover lung transplants for the treatment of cystic fibrosis in patients older than 21. The procedure, the three-week hospital stay, the six months of living out of state and the transportation costs would all have to come from Chapman’s own pocket.

Fundraisers were set up all over the state, but nothing came close to the hundreds of thousands of dollars needed to cover all the expenses. That’s when the community started lobbying.

“For lack of a better term, I was the poster boy,” Chapman said. “I was the face they put to the condition.”

After much pleading and bureaucratic red tape, the Alaska Legislature changed the law to cover lung transplants for cystic fibrosis no matter what the patient’s age.

“I was the first adult over 21 they gave a transplant to,” Chapman said.

Back in the Valley with a fresh set of lungs, Chapman is able to worry about the decisions everyone in their 20s should.

“I’m looking for a job and signing up for classes at Mat-Su College,” he said. “I’ve narrowed it down to history and criminal justice. I may major in one and minor in the other.”

As for continuing treatments, Chapman said he takes medication so his body won’t reject the transplant. He has a lot of check-ups, but it’s nothing like the period when he was spending two out of every five weeks in the hospital.

Also, he said, his doctors told him to exercise every day for at least an hour. Push it with out pushing it, he called it.

Again, the Valley stepped up. Peak Fitness gave him a free three-month membership, and owner Ann Riggs gave him personal tips about how to exercise atrophied muscles. Chapman took his bike into the Backcountry Bike Shop in Palmer for a tune-up.

“This guy walks in with a story about how he just had a double lung transplant and wants to get back on his bike,” said owner Tony Berberich. “He asked us to fix up this crappy Wal-Mart bike, but there’s only so much you can do.”

After talking it over with his shop tech, Berberich decided to give Chapman a new $400 Kona Dew bike.

“I called him up and said I’ve got some good news and some bad news,” Chapman said. “The bad news is youR bike is pretty hammered. The good news is Josh and I both thought that because you were making a comeback, you should get a new bike.”

The generosity isn’t lost on Chapman.

He jokes that donations of Corvettes and mansions are also acceptable, but he has come to understand the act is what it’s all about.

For Chapman, a fulfilled life means living to help others live better. It may be easy to expect from someone who has struggled as much as he to live for himself, but that’s not his way — not after all he has been given.

Robert DeBerry Contributed to this story. Contact Todd L. Disher at todd.disher@frontiersman.com or 352-2252.