--- title: "Man Dies After Living in Iron Lung for 70 Years" description: "A 78-year-old man, who has been living inside an iron lung since surviving polio in the 1950s, has passed away. " date: "2024-03-13" modified: "2024-03-13" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/neoscope/man-dies-living-in-iron-lung-70-years" categories: - "Health & Medicine" - "Prosthetics and Devices" tags: - "iron lung" - "polio" --- # Man Dies After Living in Iron Lung for 70 Years ![A 78-year-old man, who has been living inside an iron lung since surviving polio in the 1950s, has passed away. ]() *\Image: GoFundMe\* A 78-year-old man who had been living inside an iron lung since surviving polio in the 1950s has passed away. As [*CBS News* reports](), Paul "Polio Paul" Alexander [garnered a huge following]() on social media, getting millions of views on TikTok as he answered questions about his unusual life. The medical device didn't stop Alexander from becoming a lawyer and opening his own successful practice. He also published a [book]() about his life. Iron lungs were invented in the 1920s to keep a negative pressure, using bellows to draw air into the lungs of individuals suffering from polio and other debilitating diseases resulting in paralysis. In the early 1950s, Alexander contracted the disease during one of the country's worst outbreaks, [*NPR* reports](), and only survived due to a last-minute tracheotomy. Throughout his life, he used a rod to turn pages of books and type on a keyboard, allowing him to progress through an entire education and eventually get through law school. According to *NPR*, Alexander did for years learn how to spend hours at a time outside the iron lung. However, ever since the start of the pandemic, Alexander couldn't make it outside for more than five minutes, [per *The Guardian*](). According to Guinness World Records, he was the longest-surviving iron lung patient. Iron lungs are a rare, surviving relic of a bygone era. Martha Lillard, a woman who has also been confined to an iron lung for more than 65 years, [recalled]() back in 2021 that she was struggling to find replacement parts to keep her iron lung respirator functioning properly. Most recently, a [GoFundMe]() was created to help Alexander out in light of being "taken advantage of" by healthcare professionals. "I am so \[grateful\] to everybody who donated to my brother's fundraiser," his brother, Philip told *CBS News*. "It allowed him to live his last few years stress-free." "It is absolutely incredible to read all the comments and know that so many people were inspired by Paul," he added. "I am just so grateful." **More on polio:** *[Henrietta Lacks' Family Is Finally Getting Paid by the Biotech Company That Stole Her Cells]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()