Kareem Abdul-Jabbar just joined hands with a renowned pharmaceutical company for a good cause. Last year, the whole world was stunned when the news of LeBron James‘ eldest son, Bronny’s cardiac arrest came out. Luckily, the 19-year-old is safe now and even gearing up for the NBA Draft. But that incident was an eye-opener for all. And perhaps for the Los Angeles Lakers icon too, who decided to put in more work to raise awareness of this issue. He also suffers from a certain heart condition.

The heart condition that the 6x NBA champion suffers from is called Atrial fibrillation, or Afib. After having an early diagnosis and treatment, the NBA legend urged others to prioritize their health. In his efforts, the 77-year-old joined forces with the $164 billion worth Pfizer. Abdul-Jabbar’s latest Instagram post talks about his experience of getting an early diagnosis and how that helped him.

The caption of the post reads, “As a former professional athlete, I understand the importance of taking care of my body. So, I was shocked when I was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation (Afib), which can increase the risk of stroke by about 5 times.”

It was almost 2 years old when he was diagnosed with this heart condition. In an interview with People magazine, the 6x NBA champion recalled feeling ill during one of his appearances at a Los Angeles Dodgers game. He recounted collapsing and nearly crashing into the Dodgers’ trophy case on his way to his car. He immediately visited the hospital for treatment, where doctors diagnosed his heart condition.

His symptoms included irregular and often rapid heart rate, fatigue, chest pain, and more. As per the American Heart Association, this condition can often lead to stroke as mentioned by the Los Angeles Lakers legend, blood clots, heart failure, and other heart-related complications.

After proper treatment and certain exercise therapies, the NBA legend joined Pfizer’s No Time to Wait campaign. As a part of it, he continues to raise awareness on this issue. Furthermore, he encouraged others to get an early diagnosis if they were suffering from any of the symptoms mentioned above. With this instance as a reminder, numerous professional athletes are also doing their best to prevent such occurrences. 

Other athletes’ inspiring journey battling heart disease like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

5x Olympian Shaun White is one of the athletes who has struggled with congenital heart disease all his life. After undergoing two open heart surgeries and a recovery process, he won Gold medals at 3 different Winter Olympics. While he used to hide his heart condition, White bravely shares his experience now to raise awareness and inspire others. 

Following his recovery journey, White became a part of the British Heart Foundation and was also named the ambassador. He continues to raise funds for the cause while inspiring other athletes. Another name that comes to mind is Olympian Roger Black. He battled against his heart disease and gracefully won it too. Black suffered a congenital heart defect. LeBron James’son, Bronny also suffered a similar congenital heart defect.

Last year during his practice at USC, the 19-year-old collapsed and was immediately rushed to the hospital. After missing games for his recovery process, he has returned healthy this year. Larry Bird is another NBA legend who suffered from a certain heart disease and has always silently contributed to making a change. 

Stay tuned for more such updates, and to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato had to say about the marketing genius, watch this video.