Maria’s Story: Multiple Heart Attacks and a New Path Forward

Over the past 20 years, Maria has endured multiple heart attacks, countless procedures, and more heart stents than she can even remember.

Despite everything she went through, doctors couldn’t definitively explain why it kept happening. Then she discovered a possible answer from a Care Access health screening: she has elevated levels of lipoprotein(a), or Lp(a), a genetic risk factor for heart disease.

Although there is currently no approved treatment to lower Lp(a), promising research is underway. When Care Access invited Maria to join an Lp(a) clinical trial near her home in Indianapolis, she saw a chance to help advance new treatments while taking an active role in her own health.

“To be in the position that I can be one of the people that contribute the data to get a drug to market is exciting,” she says.

Today, Maria hopes her participation will help make new treatment options possible for her children and for everyone living with elevated Lp(a).