Dick Cheney receives heart transplant

Updated 10:30 p.m. ET

(CBS News) Former Vice President Dick Cheney received a heart transplant on Saturday, his office announced.

A statement from the former vice president's office said the 71-year-old is now recovering in the intensive care unit of Inova Fairfax Hospital in Falls Church, Va., outside Washington.

The statement said Cheney had been on the transplant list for 20 months and did not know the identity of the donor.

"Although the former vice president and his family do not know the identity of the donor, they will be forever grateful for this lifesaving gift," the statement read.

Cheney, who served as President George W. Bush's vice president from 2001 to 2009, has a long history of heart problems. He suffered his first heart attack at age 37 and his fifth in 2010. In 1988, he underwent quadruple bypass surgery and has had several other heart surgeries since then, including multiple angioplasties and the implantation of a pacemaker.

List: Cheney's heart problems since 1978

In 2010, he had a battery-powered heart pump known as a Left Ventricular Assist Device implanted to keep his heart working - a device that is often used for short periods by patients awaiting a transplant.

In an interview early last year, Cheney called the heart pump a "wondrous device," but said that it made it "awkward to walk around." The device, which takes over the job of the heart's main pumping chamber, is powered by batteries worn in a fanny pack.

Cheney also said in the interview that "he would have to make have to make a decision at some point" about whether to have a heart transplant.

"What's happened over time is the technology's gotten better and better and we've gotten more and more experience with people living with this technology," he added.

According to the Associated Press, more than 70 percent of heart transplant recipients live at least five years, but the rate is lower for people over 65.

The AP also reports that according to the United Network for Organ Sharing, more than 2,300 heart transplants were performed last year, and that 332 people of them were for people over age 65. Last year, 330 people died while waiting for a transplant, and there are more than 3,100 Americans currently are on the national waiting list. 

Several of the Republican president candidates reacted to the news via statements on Saturday night.

"Karen and I would like to extend our thoughts and prayers to the Vice President for a speedy recovery," Rick Santorum said in a written statement. "I have known the Vice President for many years and I know Vice President Cheney to be a fighter. We wish him well in his time of recuperation and we will pray for the entire Cheney family."

"Vice President Cheney is in our thoughts and prayers tonight, as he recovers from surgery," Newt Gingrich said, also in a written statement. "Callista and I hope that his recovery is peaceful, and we wish him and his family all of the best. He has been a colleague and friend for many years, and we are glad that the surgery went well."

"Ann and I send our thoughts and prayers to Vice President Cheney for a fast and full recovery," Mitt Romney said on Twitter.

[Courty001]

uhm ahh. you see somment two here all those CRACKER'S MOVED TO CENTURY COUNTY WITH THOSE WINS

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[L2431]

****RING'S OVER RING'S**** hi this is the SIS,the CIA,and the F.B.I.,and the Secret Service,uhm NYPD and LAPD with ***** Beach PD uhm also the CIA Director from 2006-2009 with William M. Gaines is Allen Osborne still with your Agency-hit 42873-112 ****RING'S OVER RING'S OVER RING'S**** YOU KNOW WHAT SPAD'S TABLE CRACKER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Courty001]

uhm ahh. ALL THOSE CRACKER'S MOVED TO CENTURY COUNTY WITH THOSE WINS

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[cschene]

Criminal Cheney,

The fact that a donated heart kept your evil carcass alive is a reason not to be an organ donor.

May you die soon.

[cschene]

Cheney is the worst war criminal in my life time. The sooner he departs this life, the better.

What a shame that a working heart was used to keep this waste of space alive.

[Power123678]

When is this low life scumbag going to die? Hopefully soon. He's the main reason the US is in such a ******* mess. Someone should kill this guy. America would be a better place.

[Geminry]

Everyone knows Dick Cheney has no heart. What did they do, replace it with another void?

[Power123678]

yeah, no kidding.

[Kenhudson]

Just goes to show you. If your a rich Republican, and even a war criminal you can get a new heart, while everyone else waits, waits, and waits! So much for fairness.

[Power123678]

no ****. what fairness. it's only scum like him that walks free. He should be jailed or put to death.

[BigMax723]

There would be no debate if this was Bill Clinton. Too bad that the thought processes of the left are so demented, they can't tell the difference between a courageous patriot who did what was necessary to keep America safe and a community organizer who is a socialist anti-American who will do anything to divide this country and bring it to it's knees.

[Geminry]

"they can't tell the difference between a courageous patriot who did what was necessary to keep America safe"

I know you aren't referring to Cheney...

[Kidneyone06012010]

As a fellow organ recipient, I wish you well Mr. Cheney with your Heart Transplant. My renal function has been stable now for well over one year and nine months with no problems. I sincerely hope your recovery is just as smooth as mine is. Wishing you many good years of life.

[RobertHarrington]

Transplant? More likely an original acquisition of a heart.

[Geminry]

You are wishing him many good years of life? What is wrong with you? It's Dick Cheney!

[BWB2020]

"...I don't think there is any question that Iraq is better today than ten years ago as it has consolidated itself enough to have central government AND Security..."

Contrary to what your post implies, they had both before Bush and Cheney lied us into decapitating (literally) the central government.

!0 years ago there was no hostile foreign forces committing genocide against the inhabitants, and Saddam, like him or not, had the various ethnic and religious forces balanced against each other, the various factions did not dare start trouble under his iron rule. Contrary to what the right conveniently fails to realize, many of the people living on Earth need an iron rule, otherwise their places would be bloodbaths, as is so plainly demonstrated in Iraq now, and as has been shown time and again throughout history whenever a strong government is suddenly toppled.

Now if you wish to posit that the various internecine bloodbaths taking place now are better than when such was not the case, I guess you are free to do so, but I doubt you will find anywhere near a majority of Iraqi citizens agreeing with you.

"... And we have the desired level of participation and control of their energy ministry that we saw fit to place in safer, diplomatic and more competitive hands..."

Here I thought MY jokes were bad. Desired by whom? It is the Iraqis who have the only right to work for their own "desired level of participation", and not our right, either legal or moral, to force our "desires" upon them.

Safer hands? you're kidding, right?

Diplomatic? Well I guess they used to call it "gunboat diplomacy", but I doubt if the current popular usage of the word "diplomatic" fits those who have stolen the energy control. It is not our place to judge what those people choose to do with their oil. If we are supposed to be such champions of "freedom", (the stated reason for our genocide, according to Bush/Cheney then how do we, in the same breath, deny the right of Iraqis to do freely with their oil as they wish?

As for "competitive"? Against whom?

Iraqi oil, or at least that which does not go to China and Russia, goes into the OPEC pot, where prices are controlled by a most non-competitive cartel.

"...And this has been beneficial to our economy, and Iraqi stability. That would also be Cheney's likely rationale..."

Anyone believing that rational is as much a sucker as Cheney is a criminal.

Our economy has been gutted by the war profiteers, at a cost of 10 billion per month for the last 10 (almost 11) years, to the point where some baggers are even discussing ending public education, because they would rather condemn their own progeny to ignorance rather than pay the taxes for the bills for the debacles they supported.

I really wouldn't be surprised if Cheney did posit such rationale, but it is quite clear that not only is such a false assertion, but it is only logical that even Cheney knows it is a false premise, otherwise he wouldn't have had to lie us into it.