How Many More Will Die Waiting for a Cure That’s Stuck in Testing?

Every life-saving treatment starts with a clinical trial.

You can’t approve a cure no one is willing to test.

I didn’t say yes to the clinical trial because I was feeling brave.I said yes because I was out of options.

My heart was failing. I couldn’t breathe right. I couldn’t walk far. Nothing was working.Surgery wasn’t an option. The meds weren’t helping.I was exhausted—physically and emotionally—and I honestly didn’t think I had much time left.

So when the doctor asked if I’d consider trying something new—a clinical trial—I said yes.Not because I was fearless.But because I wasn’t ready to give up.

Before I joined this trial, I had doubts too. Clinical trials often get misunderstood—and honestly, it’s costing people their lives.

People hear the word trial and think guinea pig.That’s not what this is. At all.

Clinical trials are science.They’re built on years—decades—of research.Every step is carefully designed and reviewed by doctors, nurses, researchers, and ethics boards.And patients are protected in every step. We have rights. We give consent. And we can walk away at any point.

What most people don’t realize is this:Every treatment we use today—from blood pressure meds to life-saving heart valves—started in a clinical trial!

So no, I wasn’t a lab rat.I was a partner in something bigger than myself—something that could save lives.

Every treatment we trust today began with someone brave enough to say, ‘I’ll go first.’”

That trial didn’t just give me a working tricuspid valve.It gave me hope when I had none.It gave me a second chance to live—when the world had already started grieving me.

And somewhere in the middle of that recovery, it gave me purpose.

Because I realized this journey wasn’t just about surviving.It was about why I survived.

It lit a fire in me:

• To speak up.

• To share the truth about what it’s like to be a patient.

• And to make sure others—especially women and people of color—get the same chance I did.

  
  

Quick Facts About Clinical Trials (Because Facts Matter):

✅ Clinical trials are how we test new treatments to make sure they’re safe and effective before they’re approved for the public.

✅ Participants are protected by strict safety protocols, reviewed by ethics committees, and can leave the trial at any time.

✅ Many of today’s most important treatments—including heart valves, cancer drugs, and vaccines—exist because someone said yes to a trial.

✅ But here’s the hard truth: Women, Black patients, older adults, and other minorities are underrepresented in trials. That means we don’t always know if a treatment will work well for our bodies. That needs to change.

That’s why I started HeartBridge Collective.Because healing takes more than procedures.It takes people.It takes being seen, heard, and supported through the scariest moments of our lives

The fact that you’re still searching means there’s still hope. I’m here to walk it with you.

Don’t let fear or misinformation keep you from asking about clinical trials.

Ask. Learn. Decide.

You deserve answers. You deserve options. Let’s find them together.

#ClinicalTrialsMatter #HeartValveDisease #PatientVoice #ScienceSavesLives #HospiceSurvivor #HeartBridgeCollective #SelfAdvocacy #TrustTheProcess