The first doctor he saw at the emergency room told him his only option is open heart surgery. He explicitly told us to not waste time getting second opinions.
Thankfully we did not listen and we were able to consult with two different cardiologists. They both independently said that they could easily treat him with an angioplasty.
Now, I'm not an idiot - I know X wasn't destined to have a long and happy old age - but a bullet's a bullet.
Eh, many years ago now, maybe I should have fought harder - there were signs they botched something pretty badly. Who knows? Proving that something killed X - besides X - would have been a bear, and of course when it comes to opportunity, you're always the prime suspect in your own death. Lesson for you younguns out there: when you're in the hospital and *The Doctor* comes to give you *The News* - one of life's great repeating acts - that is not the time to shut down or cry it out. Put your radar up, stay frosty, lids open, if you see blood or stuff where it's not supposed to be, then lawyer up pronto. Just the initial consult for this kind of thing won't cost you anything but paperwork and phone calls - something I didn't know at the time.