Dianne Odell died Wednesday trapped in an ‘iron lung’— the artificial breathing machine that she had lived in for almost 60 years. Dianne Odell was 61. She was diagnosed with polio at three years old and lived in the iron lung to breathe.
The iron lung worked by forcing her lungs to expand and contract. It is 7 feet long and weighs 750 pounds. When the power failed, Dianne Odell’s family rushed to help her but were unable to start a power generator on the property.
Dianne Odell was diagnosed with poli just 3 years before the vaccine was made available. Despite her confinement to the iron lung, she lived a full life, graduating from college and writing a book via voice -activated software about a star called "Blinky" who dreams of becoming a wishing star despite his tiny size.
A fund was recently established called the Dianne Odell Fund, which sought to offset the high costs of her care. Her medical care cost $60,000 a year– totaling $3.5 million over her lifetime.
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