Wisconsin — Former UFC fighter Ben Askren posted a video update on his health Wednesday on Instagram, revealing he underwent a double lung transplant after a terrifying battle with severe pneumonia that caused his heart to stop four times. The 40-year-old fighter’s survival story comes at a time when transplant research faces significant funding challenges that could impact future patients.
“I only died four times, where the ticker stopped for about 20 seconds,” Askren said in the emotional video from his hospital bed. He lost 50 pounds in 45 days and has no memory of most events from May 28 to July 2, learning about his ordeal through his wife Amy’s journal.
Who Is Ben Askren?
Ben Askren built his reputation as one of the most accomplished grapplers in combat sports history. He represented the United States in the 2008 Summer Olympics and won two NCAA Division I wrestling championships before transitioning to mixed martial arts.
In MMA, Askren quickly found success after winning the Bellator Season 2 welterweight tournament before capturing the welterweight title in 2010. He successfully defended his title four times before signing with ONE Championship, where he also captured welterweight gold, running his career record to 18-0.
Askren was acquired by the UFC in a rare promotional “trade” that sent Demetrious Johnson to ONE. He won his UFC debut against Robbie Lawler, but back-to-back losses to Jorge Masvidal and Demian Maia led to his retirement from MMA in 2019. His final combat sports appearance came in 2021 when he lost to Jake Paul in a boxing match.
The Medical Crisis
Askren, a 40-year-old father of three children, developed pneumonia following a staph infection and was hospitalized in his home state of Wisconsin. What started as a routine infection quickly became life-threatening.
Askren had been in hospital with severe lung damage caused by a sudden bout of pneumonia during which he spent time on life support. After weeks of waiting for a donor, Amy Askren wrote on Facebook that the 40-year-old had finally undergone a lung transplant.
“I was actually on a scale yesterday and 147 pounds. I haven’t been 147 pounds since 15 years old. So, I lost like 50 pounds in a 45-day period. Man, that was a battle. Other than that, I don’t remember most of it,” Askren said.
Community Support and Jake Paul’s Help
The combat sports community rallied around Askren during his crisis. “The thing that was most impeccable to me was all the love I felt from everybody,” Askren said. “It was almost like I got to have my own funeral. The outpouring of love from the wrestling community was just amazing”.
Jake Paul said after his most recent fight against Julio César Chávez Jr. on June 29 that he is planning to donate to help pay for Askren’s medical bills. This gesture is particularly notable given their previous boxing rivalry, showing how medical crises can unite former opponents.
Transplant surgeries can cost between $400,000 and $2 million, not including lifelong immunosuppressive medications and follow-up care. Insurance coverage varies, and many patients face significant financial burdens even with coverage.
The State of Transplant Research Under Threat
Askren’s survival story highlights the critical importance of transplant research and infrastructure at a time when both face significant challenges. Federal research funding cuts pose an “existential threat” to academic medicine that will have repercussions for patient care in the US, according to a new report from the Association of American Medical Colleges.
The new report says academic health systems are twice as likely as other hospitals to provide clinical services such as trauma centers, organ transplant centers, birthing rooms and substance use disorder care. These institutions train future transplant surgeons and conduct the research that makes procedures like Askren’s possible.
National Institutes of Health funding for abdominal organ transplantation research has declined over a 30-year analysis period , even as demand for transplants continues to grow. This funding supports crucial research into donor-recipient compatibility, surgical techniques, and immune modulation that could improve outcomes for future patients.
Current Transplant System Challenges
More organ transplants occurred in the United States in 2024 than ever before, with 48,149 transplants representing an increase of 3.3 percent compared to 2023. However, demand far exceeds supply, with over 100,000 Americans currently waiting for organ transplants.
Proposed changes to the National Institutes of Health’s $48 billion budget would risk jobs, threaten state economies, and hamper progress toward prevention and treatment of diseases. NIH funding contributed to research for roughly 99 percent of drugs approved between 2010 and 2019, including heart medications.
The Trump administration has targeted research agencies for significant changes. Newly confirmed Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has made clear his intentions to scale down staffing significantly at the agency and to essentially end investments in key areas such as drug development and infectious disease research.
What Transplantation Research Remains Funded
Despite funding challenges, some transplant initiatives continue. The Increasing Organ Transplant Access Model is a 6-year, mandatory model that begins on July 1, 2025, aiming to increase access to life-saving transplants for patients living with end-stage renal disease.
CMS selected 103 hospitals for the model, focusing on providing incentives to transplant hospitals to increase transplantation and support greater care coordination. However, this represents only a fraction of the comprehensive research needed to advance transplant medicine.
Each year, medical schools and teaching hospitals train about 77,000 residents nationwide, making these institutions the primary producers of primary care and specialty physicians. Cuts to these programs could impact the pipeline of future transplant specialists.
Askren’s Recovery and Future
Askren’s recovery will be lengthy and challenging. “We are forever thankful to the donor and his family. This is the beginning of a new lifestyle for Ben, but every new day he has is a gift,” Amy Askren wrote.
Lung transplant recipients face lifelong challenges, including daily immunosuppressive medications, increased infection risk, and potential organ rejection. However, successful transplants can provide years of quality life that wouldn’t be possible otherwise.
Since his MMA retirement, Askren has focused on his coaching career at his Askren Wrestling Academy in Wisconsin. His experience may influence his future advocacy for organ donation and transplant research funding.
The intersection of Askren’s personal medical crisis with broader healthcare policy challenges illustrates why sustained research funding matters. His survival depended on decades of transplant research, surgical innovation, and the complex medical infrastructure that current budget cuts threaten to undermine.
As Askren continues his recovery, his story serves as both inspiration and warning about the importance of maintaining robust support for life-saving medical research and transplant programs that could help future patients facing similar crises.
