X-Message-Number: 7751 Date: Mon, 24 Feb 97 19:22:58 From: linda <> Subject: Ed Kuhrt Suspension To: CryoNet From: Linda Chamberlain CryoTransport Manager Alcor Life Extension Foundation On February 8, 1997, Ed Kuhrt from Long Island, New York, was placed into suspension by the Alcor Life Extension Foundation in Scottsdale, AZ. In a LifePact interview I made with Ed in the hospital several weeks before his cardiopulmonary arrest, he told me how he became interested in cryonics. As a private investigator in the mid 1970s, Ed was retained by an insurance company to investigate the Cryonics Society of New York. Both Ed and the insurance company anticipated they would find some kind of fraud or scam. But the outcome of Ed’s investigation was positive rather than negative, and resulted in Ed signing up to be frozen. Ed and his wife became Alcor members in September of 1984. In January, Ed was diagnosed with an aggressive form of lung cancer that had already metastasized to the bone. Due to insurance (HMO) rules, Ed was not able to relocate to Arizona. The slow progress of his disease, however, made it possible for two members of Alcor’s CryoTransport Team (Linda Chamberlain and Tanya Jones) to make a logistics trip to Long Island several weeks in advance of Ed’s arrest in order to make arrangements with his oncologist, the hospital, and a cooperating funeral home. The oncologist and the hospital, Mather Memorial Hospital in Port Jefferson, Long Island, were very supportive and gave Alcor unprecedented assistance. The positive and cooperative attitude displayed by the entire nursing staff was comforting to Ed’s family and was invaluable to Alcor in its efforts to deal with a remote standby and transport situation. At the time of arrest, a code team was called from the emergency room and cardiopulmonary resuscitation was started while heparin, sodium bicarbonate, streptokinase, and Maalox (through gastric tube) were administered. After the emergency room personnel finished this initial protocol, Alcor personnel continued cardiac compression, packed Ed in ice, and delivered additional medications to limit ischemic damage and stabilize cell membranes. Ed was then transfered to the funeral home for hemodilution before being shipped by air to Scottsdale for cryoperfusion and long term storage. Both the washout and perfusion went well. Full details will be published in Cryonics magazine. It is always gratifying to be able to report a successful suspension, especially when the patient has been interested in and involved as long as Ed Kuhrt. In this case, he was one of our pioneers, and enormous satisfaction was felt by everyone involved. Members of the cryonics community who knew Ed and Anne Kuhrt may want to send their best wishes or other communications to Anne at 427-A Aylesbury Court, Ridge, NY 11961. Boundless Life, Linda Chamberlain () CryoTransport Manager Alcor Life Extension Foundation Non-profit cryonic suspension services since 1972. 7895 E. Acoma Dr., Suite 110, Scottsdale AZ 85260-6916 Phone (602) 922-9013 (800) 367-2228 FAX (602) 922-9027 for general requests http://www.alcor.org Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=7751