Paul Alexander, who lived in iron lung for more than 70 years, dies at 78
globalnews.cairon lung, died on Monday. He was 78.Alexander, who was also known online as ‘Iron Lung Man,’ spent the last seven decades of his life living in an iron lung after contracting polio when he was a child in the 1950s.The Dallas, Texas resident was diagnosed with polio when he was 6 years old and was paralyzed from the neck down, leaving him unable to breathe on his own.Despite being confined to a 600-pound iron lung, Alexander was a go-getter with a zest for life.
He obtained his law degree, passed the bar to become a lawyer and wrote a book, all while his entire body, except his head, was immobilized in the machine.Alexander was one of the last remaining polio survivors to use an iron lung. The massive, coffin-shaped machine is a mechanical respirator that works by using negative pressure to push air into the lungs.
Read more on globalnews.ca
