Beat the Widowmaker: Wake-Up Call | Troy's Story

He thought it was a panic attack, but it was a heart attack.

A forgotten cellphone may have saved Troy Banning’s life.

Troy, director of Community Engagement for the Gilbert Community School District, had no warning signs that Sept.16, 2024, would be anything but ordinary. He felt fine when he left for work. But by mid-morning, how he felt had subtly changed.

“Around 9 a.m., I had to go outside to talk to someone,” Troy recalls. “As I walked back to the office, I felt a little short of breath. I didn’t think much of it.”

Later that morning, during a photo shoot with the school’s homecoming court, those feelings escalated.

“I started sweating a lot. I honestly thought I was having a panic attack. I’d had one about 15 years ago and hadn’t had one since, but I thought, ‘Okay, maybe it’s happening again,’” he says.

He pushed through the photos and then went home at lunch to rest, but quickly returned to the office when he realized he’d forgotten his phone.

“I remember thinking, ‘It’d be really bad if I’m having a heart attack and I don’t have my phone,’” he says.

Back at the office, a colleague took a look at him and urged him to go to the emergency room at Mary Greeley Medical Center. Troy resisted.

“I told him, ‘No, it’s fine. It’s just a pain,’” he says. “All my pain was on my right side. And TV always tells you heart attack pain is on the left side, down your left arm. I didn’t have that. It was just a nagging, uncomfortable feeling.”

Eventually, his colleague and the school superintendent convinced him. His coworker drove him to the ER. Troy told the staff he was experiencing chest pain, and he was immediately taken in for examination.

Diagnosis and Urgent Action

In the ER, Troy was seen by Dr. Alex Davis, a McFarland Clinic emergency physician—and someone Troy had known since Alex was a kid.

“He told me, ‘Yeah, you’re having a heart attack, but we caught it. Let’s fix it,’” Troy says.

Dr. Snehitha Vijaykumar, a cardiologist with Mary Greeley’s Cardiology Clinic, was on call that afternoon, and immediately alerted.

“I got a call from the ER that a young person had come in with chest pain,” she says. “It was a massive heart attack that required immediate attention. I was at his bedside and took him to the cath lab for an urgent angiogram.”

The angiogram revealed a 100% blockage in one of the heart’s main arteries.

“I was shocked,” she says. “It was the widowmaker—a complete blockage of the left anterior descending artery. Thankfully, we were able to open it in time and place a stent.”

Troy was stunned.

“It was the big one. I later found out it was the widowmaker heart attack,” he says. “I was very fortunate that Dr. Vijaykumar was there, and they were able to clear it so quickly.”

Atypical Symptoms and Dangerous Assumptions

Troy’s pain was on his right side—an atypical symptom that nearly delayed his care. It’s a common misconception that heart attack pain always presents on the left side.

“He had right-sided pain, which isn’t typical,” Vijaykumar says. “But many people have atypical symptoms. Especially in younger patients, we often hear, ‘It’s probably just musculoskeletal pain,’ or ‘Maybe it’s acid reflux.’”

She’s seen women present with only upper back pain or a vague sense of unease.

“I’ve had patients say, ‘I just didn’t feel right.’ And they were having massive heart attacks. Many people ignore these signs because they don’t match the textbook symptoms,” she says.

Troy’s experience is a cautionary tale for anyone who thinks they’re too young or too healthy to be at risk.

Recovery and Reflection

Just days after his heart attack, Troy began cardiac rehab.

“Whatever the doctors told me to do, I was going to do it. You want me to jump off a building? I’ll do it. Just tell me what I need to do,” he says.

He completed 18 sessions and credits the nurses and staff with helping him recover physically and mentally.

“Dr. Davis and Dr. Vijaykumar saved my life. That’s surreal to say when you’re only 48 years old. And the cardiac rehab team put me back together. I feel better than I have in 15 years,” he says.

The experience forced Troy to reevaluate his approach to health.

“I was someone who always said, ‘I feel fine. I don’t need a checkup.’ I ignored the reminders to get my cholesterol checked or schedule a yearly physical,” he says. “But I’ve learned you have to be vigilant about your own health.”

He also reflected on his family history—his grandfather died of a heart attack at 56, and his mother had a stent placed at 60.

“Those were signs I should’ve paid more attention to,” he says. “You can’t eat like you’re 18 when you’re 48. You have to make time to work out, de-stress, and take care of yourself.”

The Value of Cardiac Rehab

Dr. Vijaykumar emphasized that aftercare is just as critical as emergency treatment.

“We have an excellent cardiac rehab team,” she says. “After a heart attack or stent placement, rehab helps patients regain strength and confidence. We monitor blood pressure and heart rate and gradually increase activity. People notice a real difference in how they feel.”

Troy was initially unsure about rehab.

“When you’re 48, you never think you’ll be in cardiac rehab,” he says. “I wondered, ‘Is this something I need?’ But it took 10 minutes to realize—it was exactly where I needed to be.”

A New Outlook

“Today, I feel great,” Troy says. “Over the past 11 months, I have taken on what I think is a pretty strong workout regimen. I work out—doing cardio either on a Peloton or treadmill, with occasional weightlifting days—5-6 days per week and 40-45 minutes per day. It’s just become my lifestyle.”

Troy’s experience was a wake-up call, not just for him, but for anyone who thinks heart disease is something that happens to other people.

“I’ve always thought of myself as a 23-year-old in terms of how I live,” he says. “But I’m not that anymore. As you get older, you have to be more vigilant. This was a scary experience, and if I don’t learn and grow from it, then it was a wasted opportunity.” ■