http://www.mcall.com/sports/mc-spt-matt-millen-heart-transplant-20180425-story.html
Matt Millen battles rare disease, may need heart transplant
Mark Wogenrich
Of The Morning Call
Matt Millen mowed his lawn on Monday, and then he went to chemotherapy.
Millen loves to cut the grass of his five-acre Bucks County home, where he has a woodshop, a barn and a kiln. He puts on a pair of spikes and walks behind his big industrial mower. Once a fearsome
NFL linebacker who won four
Super Bowl rings, Millen refuses to ride.
These days, however, it takes Millen more time to mow, as he continues treatment for a rare disease called amyloidosis that has robbed his heart of most of its normal function. Because it often goes undiagnosed, amyloidosis carries life-threatening effects.
“You continue to do the things you love to do, maybe not at 100 percent, but you do them,” said Pat Millen, Matt’s wife of more than 35 years. “You don’t stop or turn into this ‘woe is me’ type of person. That’s not him.”
All things considered, Millen has done well for himself. At 60, he has a “phenomenal” wife, four accomplished kids, seven grandchildren, a nearly 40-year football career as a player, general manager and broadcaster, a weekly Bible study group and a professional-grade workshop where he makes kitchen cabinets coveted by homeowners.
For all that he has going for him, Millen also likely will need a heart transplant, the result of living with this rare disease for years without knowing.
A Whitehall High graduate and All-America defensive tackle at
Penn State, Millen spoke publicly about his condition for the first time this week to clear some misconceptions about his health.
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