Full Breakdown
A Young Mother’s Journey from Sudden Heart Attack to Transplant Waiting List
By Drooid · · How we work
Sudden Onset and Initial Diagnosis
In her mid-20s, Jasmine Irsik, a 35-year-old analyst from Eastvale, California, awoke at 3 a.m. with a tingling sensation in her left arm. After an emergency-room visit showed no immediate abnormalities on an electrocardiogram, doctors later returned her blood work indicating elevated troponin levels, a marker of heart-muscle damage. They suspected a heart attack despite her age, health, and a four-week pregnancy. The pregnancy continued to 32 weeks, culminating in a C-section delivery in 2016. Subsequent testing diagnosed her with dilated cardiomyopathy, a condition in which the heart enlarges and struggles to pump blood.
Escalating Rhythm Disorders and Device Interventions
Over the following years, Irsik experienced multiple episodes where her implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) fired, delivering shocks to correct life-threatening arrhythmias. Doctors identified supraventricular tachycardia and, after repeated shocks, replaced the subcutaneous ICD with a traditional ICD-pacemaker combination and intensified medication. Despite these measures, her ejection fraction—a measure of cardiac pumping efficiency—dropped to 18 percent, far below the typical adult range of 50-70 percent. Physicians noted extensive scarring on the left side of her heart and classified her condition as heart failure by 2024.
Genetic Insight and Transplant Eligibility
Genetic testing later revealed that Irsik carries a rare FLNC gene variant, which predisposes carriers to cardiomyopathy, heart failure, and dangerous arrhythmias. Medical professionals explained that this variant accounts for the progressive nature of her disease and that each of her children faces a 50 percent chance of inheriting the same mutation. In March 2026, she was officially placed on the national heart-transplant waiting list.
Daily Reality and Advocacy Efforts
Irsik’s quality of life now fluctuates dramatically; she can sometimes walk a block but often requires a wheelchair for basic errands. Persistent fatigue, dizziness, brain fog, and chest pain limit her ability to work, prompting her to leave her analyst position. She maintains a constant phone presence to receive alerts from her ICD and shares her experience on TikTok (@jnicoleee91) to raise public awareness of heart failure, a leading cause of death that often presents without warning signs.
Key Medical Data
- Initial troponin elevation indicating myocardial injury.
- Ejection fraction reduced to 18 percent (normal 50-70 percent).
- Presence of a pathogenic FLNC gene variant; 50 percent inheritance risk for each child.
- Multiple ICD shocks recorded between 2022 and 2024, reflecting recurrent arrhythmias.
The case underscores how rare genetic factors can precipitate severe cardiac disease in young adults and highlights the importance of early detection, device therapy, and transplant evaluation.