Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Achille Polonara Reveals Post-Transplant Coma From Cerebral Embolism as Recovery Begins

The basketball star disclosed on Le Iene that doctors had warned of a 90% chance of death.

Overview

  • Polonara underwent a bone marrow transplant on September 25 using a roughly 90%-compatible donation from an American donor.
  • On October 16 he suffered a cerebral embolism that deprived his brain of oxygen, leading physicians to induce a pharmacological coma for several days.
  • He has started brief outings from Bologna’s Sant’Orsola-Malpighi hospital, remains in a wheelchair with reduced mobility in his right arm, and is expected to continue rehabilitation after discharge.
  • Polonara and his wife spoke publicly after more than a month of privacy, explaining the sequence of complications and the initially dire prognosis.
  • His treatment path included about two months of chemotherapy in Valencia before returning to Bologna, and he is currently under contract with Dinamo Sassari.