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UCSD Looks for Relief from Angina

UCSD Looks for Relief from Angina
Angina is a heart condition that brings chronic pain to millions of Americans. KPBS reporter Tom Fudge says UCSD Medical Center is looking at a new path to relief.

Angina is a heart condition that brings chronic pain to millions of Americans. KPBS reporter Tom Fudge says UCSD Medical Center is looking at a new path to relief.

Mike Bandikian had quadruple bypass surgery thirteen years ago. And now he suffers from painful angina, which is aggravated when he exercises or is under stress. He says he asked about having more surgery but his doctor told him to wait.

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"Because science is changing. Everything is changing. So I waited… until this day came," he says.

For Mike "this day" has brought hope in an experimental treatment being tested at UCSD. Angina is a condition in which coronary arteries are blocked and the heart muscle becomes short of oxygen. In this new treatment, the heart is injected with a protein that encourages the growth of blood vessels. Doctors hope it will provide a new kind of bypass in which blood flows around the blockage in new vessels. The study will last one year. Tom Fudge, KPBS news.