Melbourne mum survives catastrophic seven heart attacks

Rupika Chopra was a normal mum when she suddenly suffered seven heart attacks, and against the odds she survived to tell her incredible story.

Young mother Rupika Chopra spent two months in ICU at The Alfred after developing a rare severe cardiac condition.. Picture: Mark Stewart

It took a lot of faith to bring Melbourne mum Rupika Chopra home for Christmas.

Mrs Chopra, 38, and her husband Yogesh Malhotra said it was their faith – both in a higher god and in modern medicine – that kept the mother of two alive after she suffered a catastrophic seven heart attacks.

For Andrew Taylor, The Alfred cardiologist who helped to treat her, his faith was in the hospital, its specialist team and knowing Mrs Chopra was in the best place in the world for the unique cardiac care she needed to save her life.

“Faith gave her a lot of strength all the way through,” Professor Taylor said. “I don’t think she would have survived if she hadn’t come to The Alfred.”

Mrs Chopra’s health scare started in late August when she noticed some neck and shoulder pain, but put it down to a life busy with a young family and working as a carer.

Young mother Rupika Chopra with her husband Yogesh Malhotra and youngest child Royale Malhotra, 3. Picture: Mark Stewart

When she had numbness in her arm, her husband suspected she was having a heart attack and took her to The Alfred where she was later diagnosed with eosinophilic myocarditis. This is a rare and potentially fatal inflammatory heart disease that causes severe clotting that stops the heart functioning as it should.

“We didn’t realise how serious it was,” Mr Malhotra said. “My wife had been perfectly healthy, we didn’t even tell anyone she was in hospital at first; we were treating it as normal.

“Then a few nights later Rupika called me to the hospital and I knew if she is asking me to come, it must be serious.”

He arranged care for their two children, daughter Megha-Shyniel (10) and son Royale, 3, and raced to the hospital where he was told his wife had suffered a heart attack – the first of three she would have that night before doctors placed her in an induced coma.

“She’d had no oxygen to the brain for more than 20 minutes and they didn’t know the outcome,” Mr Malhotra said. “But she was able to squeeze my hand, so I knew there was life inside her.”

Eight days later he said his wife was brought out of the coma alert and aware, but then she suffered a further four heart attacks. The fight was still on to save her life.

Mr Malhotra said they were a normal, happy couple with two children, buying a house and suddenly he was being told his wife of 11 years may not survive the night.

“I told the doctor you do your job, and I’ll do mine,” Mr Malhotra said, referring to a promise to his wife that he would pray to the Hindu saint Guruji for her to recover.

Yogesh said he never lost faith that she would recover. Picture: Mark Stewart

After eight weeks where doctors considered options from a heart transplant to turning off her life support, and as the couple and their family and friends prayed for a miracle, Mrs Chopra’s health started to improve.

Her husband said everyone who knew them had joined their hands together in front of whoever they had faith in and prayed for the family.

“We never lost faith that she would recover,” Mr Malhotra said.

“One of the doctors said ‘I think you’re overconfident’ and Rupika replied ‘I’m not overconfident – I just believe’.”

Professor Taylor says it is rare to see a patient so unwell go on to survive.

“She experienced a range of very serious complications from the initial cardiac condition, including a lacerated liver, kidney failure, severe arrhythmia and internal bleeding,” he said.

“This was more than just a cardiac team working together – this was a whole of hospital response to an incredibly sick patient.”

Professor Taylor added The Alfred does see a number of patients with eosinophilic myocarditis and that once the inflammation is controlled, most will go on to recover, which is what happened with Mrs Chopra.

As for Mrs Chopra, she says sometimes you have to have faith in faith.

Originally published as Melbourne mum survives catastrophic seven heart attacks