In August of 2022, Marc Friedman began to have consistent, uncharacteristic chest pain. After coming to The Valley Hospital Emergency Department, he was admitted for further testing and observation. A coronary angiogram was performed, which looks for narrowed or blocked blood vessels in the heart, and it found his left anterior descending artery, also known as the “widow-maker” artery, was 40% narrowed, and his other arteries were narrowed by 20% or less. Further testing was needed, which revealed a diagnosis of nonischemic cardiomyopathy – a condition in which the heart’s pumping function is reduced, not caused by blocked arteries – and Marc was told to follow up with a cardiologist upon discharge.
The now 79-year-old began seeing a cardiologist in New York City at six-month intervals. In October 2024, an echocardiogram was performed, which is a non-invasive imaging test that uses sound waves to create images of the heart, and showed Marc’s ejection fraction (EF) – a key measurement that shows how much blood the heart’s left ventricle pumps with each contraction – was decreasing.
A normal, healthy EF range is between 50% and 70%, and Marc’s had dropped to 35%.
“I was diagnosed with severe cardiomyopathy and showed that I had global hypokinesis, which is a critical weakening of the heart’s pumping function,” said the Bergenfield native. “I started to do a lot of research about these conditions and knew this was not a good sign.”
When speaking with his cardiologist about what the next step was, Marc was advised to repeat the echocardiogram in six months.
“With the downward trend my EF was showing, I did not want to wait six months. I knew it was dangerous. So, I decided to seek a second opinion,” Marc said. “My primary care physician said there was one place I needed to go and one person I needed to see: Kariann Abbate, MD, the Director of the Center for Comprehensive Heart Failure Care and Associate Director of the Cardiovascular Service Line at The Valley Hospital.”
Marc made an appointment with Dr. Abbate, who referred him to Mohammadali Habibi, MD, Director of Ventricular Tachycardia Ablation at The Valley Hospital. Marc was given a continuous electrocardiogram monitor to wear to record his heart's electrical activity, specifically his premature ventricular contractions (PVCs), which are extra heartbeats that can make the heart beat out of rhythm.
“I had done a lot of research and knew anything over 12% for your PVCs was considered dangerous. Mine was recorded at 34%. Quickly, I was scheduled for a cardiac ablation with Dr. Habibi in January of 2025,” Marc said.
A cardiac ablation is a minimally invasive procedure that uses energy to create small scars in the heart tissue to interrupt the irregular electrical pathways in the heart that cause arrhythmias, or irregular heart rhythms. Although this brought the PVCs down, it did not fully suppress the PVCs, so Marc was admitted to The Valley Hospital following his ablation and started on a medication to treat heart arrhythmias. After 24-hour monitoring in the hospital to ensure side effects did not occur, Marc was released and told to continue with the medication.
“In April 2025, I made another appointment with Dr. Abbate and had more testing done, which saw my EF go up to 55%, and my PVCs went down to 1.5%,” Marc said. “Everyone was shocked! Dr. Abbate told me I had the heart of a man in his 20s.”
Marc has continued to do well, and having since moved to Virginia, he continues to see a new cardiologist who has reported his EF has risen to 62%.
“The most important part of my story is that I advocated for myself. My advice to anyone going through something health-related is to be your own advocate and educate yourself on your condition,” said Marc. “Ask the questions and get second opinions if you feel something is not right. If I hadn’t taken charge of my own health the way I did, I don’t know if I would be here.”
For more information about heart care at Valley, please visit ValleyHealth.com/Heart.