Heart Patient on ABC's 'Miracle Workers' Dies

LOS ANGELES (AP) – A woman whose fight against heart failure was chronicled for ABC's reality series "Miracle Workers" died of complications following the last-ditch use of an experimental artificial heart pump. Priscilla "Prissy" Benoit, 56, of Lake Charles, La., whose heart was severely damaged by chemotherapy for breast cancer, received the titanium Jarvik pump last fall. She died March 22 at a Houston hospital after a series of setbacks, including a stroke and pneumonia. Her story will be shown on Monday's episode of "Miracle Workers," with an audience advisory signaling the unusual outcome for a program that typically delivers help and happy endings for the seriously ill. Dr. Billy Cohn, who is regularly featured on the series and already was treating Benoit when she agreed to be filmed, said the pump represented her only chance for survival. Its use for Benoit required U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval. She consented to the operation after other treatments either proved ineffective or inappropriate, Cohn said. A heart transplant, for example, was ruled out because of her relatively recent cancer. Her treatment was not altered because of the TV series, Cohn said. The decision to show the episode came after Benoit's husband of 14 years, Jerry Primeaux, gave his approval, ABC and the series' producers said. "I want the episode to air. Prissy would want it to air," Primeaux said in a statement released through the network. "I still have faith in the Jarvik pump. ... It kept my Prissy with me for a little longer. I still have faith in all those doctors." "We knew exactly what we were getting into," Primeaux added. "We knew there could be complications. I would like this episode to be a tribute to Priscilla and her courage and her fight." David Garfinkle and Jay Renfroe, executive producers for the series, said they felt a responsibility to air Benoit's battle. She is last shown at home in early March, appearing to have made significant progress. Her death is explained on-camera by Cohn. The episode marks an unusual step for reality shows that offer help ranging from a makeover to a new house to good health, said Robert Thompson of Syracuse University's Center for the Study of Popular Television. "Miracle Workers" is disproving the idea that "by being tapped by a reality TV show, somehow everything is going to be all better," he said.