'Iron Lung Man' Who Lived 70 Years Trapped in an Iron Lung Dies... "Indomitable Will" Mourned by All Walks of Life

American Man Paralyzed by Polio at Age 6
Attends School and Studies Using Metal Respirator
Parents Are His Driving Force... "They Told Me I Could Do It"

A man who lived for over 70 years inside an iron mechanical ventilator (Iron Lung) after contracting polio in childhood passed away at the age of 78.

On the 13th (local time), the Associated Press reported that the man named Paul Alexander died on the 11th. He was hospitalized last month due to COVID-19 and was discharged, but was readmitted this month and suffered complications.

Alexander contracted polio at the age of 6 in 1952, which caused paralysis of his entire body, leading him to use a device called the "Iron Lung." This device is a type of negative pressure ventilator, a metal apparatus that helps patients who have lost muscle control due to polio or other conditions to breathe. It is a large cylindrical structure that completely encloses the patient's body except for the head, creating a partial vacuum inside to assist the lungs in inhaling air.

Paul Alexander, who has lived relying on an iron respiratory assist device for over 70 years.
[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

Alexander had been active on the video platform TikTok under the name "ironlungman" with the help of those around him. He had 337,000 followers, and his post titled "Episode 1" recorded 56 million views.

He introduced himself as a lawyer who attended school and studied law for a long time while lying inside the device. In fact, Alexander earned a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Texas in 1978 and a law degree from the same university in 1984. Although he could not use his hands, he wrote books by holding tools in his mouth to type on a keyboard.

Paul Alexander's TikTok page. [Image source=TikTok]

In a 2018 interview with the local media outlet The Dallas Morning News, he said the driving force behind his success was the magical love of his late parents. Alexander said, "My parents told me, 'You can do anything,' and I believed those words."

As his story became known, messages of support poured in, but Alexander passed away after living 72 years inside the Iron Lung. His longtime friend Daniel Spinks reported that Alexander died at a hospital in Dallas on the 11th. Spinks said, "He loved to smile," and "He was one of the bright stars in this world," paying tribute to him.