Episode 1 - Open Heart Surgery
David Payne
has a leaky mitral valve in his heart, which causes him to feel extremely tired
and short of breath. The faulty valve can cause blood to flow into the heart in the wrong direction, which puts excessive pressure on David's heart. If the condition is left untreated his heart will eventually fail.
Surgeon Francis Wells opens up David's chest and diverts his blood to a machine. He then stops the heart and cuts it open to gain access to the leaky valve.
As he starts to repair the damaged cords that operate the valve he finds that David's heart will need more extensive repair than he had anticipated. In a surprising move Francis Wells asks for the camera crew to stop filming - and we cut back to the studio, where the audience wait with bated breath to find out what will happen next...