Posted on 12/08/2005 10:44:33 PM PST by NormsRevenge
HONOLULU - Legendary Hawaiian crooner Don Ho on Thursday said he's feeling much better and may return home to the islands within a few days.
Ho, known for his signature tune "Tiny Bubbles," remained at a Thailand hospital recovering from an experimental stem cell procedure on his ailing heart. He was moved out of intensive care Wednesday.
"I'm feeling much better and I'm so happy I came up here to do it," the 75-year-old Ho said in a statement. "I'm looking forward to coming home."
A Thursday photo released by his Honolulu publicist Donna Jung shows a shirtless, baseball cap-wearing Ho smiling and waving a Hawaiian "shaka" hang-loose sign from his hospital bed in Bangkok. It also shows a big red heart-shaped pillow, several tubes attached to his body and Ho wearing his trademark raspberry-tinted sunglasses.
"Tell my fans to stay healthy," he said. "I'm ready to go another 50 years."
Ho may return to Hawaii within a few days, much earlier than planned.
Dr. Amit Patel, a heart surgeon from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center who oversaw the procedure in Bangkok, said he wouldn't be surprised to see Ho singing before Christmas.
Ho underwent a new treatment Tuesday that has not been approved in the United States. It involves multiplying stem cells taken from his blood and injecting them into his heart in hopes of strengthening the organ.
Patel said Ho was one among the first patients with nonischemic cardiomyopathy — a weakened heart muscle not due to blockages in the coronary arteries — selected for the VesCell adult stem cell therapy.
The singer had "an extremely weak" heart that was pumping far less blood than a healthy organ before the surgery, his doctor said.
Ho, who has entertained tourists for more than four decades, has suffered from heart problems for about a year and had a pacemaker implanted a few months ago.
In August, Ho was admitted to a hospital with shortness of breath. He was treated for an abnormal heart rhythm and released after three days. He soon returned to his Waikiki show on a reduced schedule.
The experimental procedure was developed by TheraVitae Co., which has offices in Thailand and laboratories in Israel, where Ho's stem cells were sent to be multiplied. The surgery costs roughly $30,000.
___
On the Net:
Don Ho: http://donho.com
Thanks for the post! Hope I get to travel to Hawaii soon, and I hope Don's there and still performing!
Hawaiian singer Don Ho, 75, smiles and gives a 'shaka' hang-loose sign Thursday, Dec. 8, 2005, while recovering at a hospital in Bangkok, Thailand. Ho was moved out of intensive care at a Thailand hospital Wednesday and was doing well after an experimental procedure on his ailing heart, his doctor said. (AP Photo/Courtesy Don Ho, Don Margolis)
Ho Down in Bangkok!
HO! HO! HO!
Tiny Bubbles
In my Heart
Make me happy
Make me want to fart
Uhh. urrr..
Oh never mind.
He is an institution there yaknow and ironically, some say he belonged in an institution for heavy drinking that may well have contributed to his heart problem.
We'll be heading to Hawaii sometime next summer if all goes well.
I have never seen Don Ho and his show there, maybe next time.. God willing.
I once slapped Don and call him a dirty old man. I was selected from the audience to be part of his skit. hehe.
"Make me want to fart"
Please... not in front of the Hawaiians.
Uhh, ,
oops , maybe that was meant for cannibals..
good men like this only pass this way once if we're lucky..
Oh.
Shhh! You can't talk about that. Good thing that the kill babies for stem cells crowd is distracted trying to save Tookie's life or else there'd be big trouble.
Blessed are the pacemakers, for they shall maintain the poor in heart.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.