Cardiac Cowboys

Cardiac Cowboys

The heart was always off-limits to surgeons. Cutting into it spelled instant death for the patient. That is, until a ragtag group of doctors scattered across the Midwest and Texas decided to throw out the rule book. Working in makeshift laboratories and home garages, using medical devices made from scavenged machine parts and beer tubes, these men and women invented the field of open heart surgery. Odds are, someone you know is alive because of them. So why has history left them behind? Presented by Chris Pine, CARDIAC COWBOYS tells the gripping true story behind the birth of heart surgery, and the young, Greatest Generation doctors who made it happen. For years, they competed and feuded, racing to be the first, the best, and the most prolific. Some appeared on the cover of Time Magazine, operated on kings and advised presidents. Others ended up disgraced, penniless, and convicted of felonies. Together, they ignited a revolution in medicine, and changed the world.

Episodes

September 18, 2025 2 mins

Listen to the series when all episodes drop Mon., Sept 29.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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America is in the midst of a cardiac health crisis. It’s the height of the Baby Boom, and American children are dying from heart disease in greater numbers than ever before in history. The doctor who sets out to solve this problem may just be the most fascinating man you've never heard of. Racing against his own terminal cancer diagnosis, Dr. Walt Lillehei embarks on an impossible mission: curing congenital heart defects in k...

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September 29, 2025 43 mins

Two of the country’s most ambitious surgeons join forces to make Houston, Texas the new cardiovascular capital of the world. Dr. Michael DeBakey and Dr. Denton Cooley’s complementary talents make them a surgical dream team. But a friendly rivalry turns them from close colleagues to fierce competitors.

 

Presented by: Chris Pine
Written and Narrated by: Jamie Napoli

 
Executive Producers: Cristina Everett...

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September 29, 2025 41 mins

A devastating turn of events forces Walt Lillehei to re-think his approach to open heart surgery. In Houston, Denton Cooley’s swift rise plunges him into a battle of egos with his boss and mentor, Michael DeBakey.

 

Presented by: Chris Pine
Written and Narrated by: Jamie Napoli

 
Executive Producers: Cristina Everett for iHeartPodcasts; Dub Cornett and Jason Ross for OSO Studios; Gerald Imber; Eric A. Rose, M....

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September 29, 2025 45 mins

Surgeons across the country race to transplant the human heart. The stakes are unimaginably high, rivalries turn vicious, and the first surgeon to cross the finish line shocks the world.

 

Presented by: Chris Pine
Written and Narrated by: Jamie Napoli

 
Executive Producers: Cristina Everett for iHeartPodcasts; Dub Cornett and Jason Ross for OSO Studios; Gerald Imber; Eric A. Rose, M.D.; John Mankiewicz; Joshua Paul ...

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September 29, 2025 55 mins

An ingenious medical device promises to eliminate the need for heart donors entirely. But when accusations of a stolen heart emerge, the simmering tension between Michael DeBakey and Denton Cooley boils over, playing out in courtrooms and headlines across the country.

 

Presented by: Chris Pine
Written and Narrated by: Jamie Napoli

 
Executive Producers: Cristina Everett for iHeartPodcasts; Dub Cornett and Jason Ros...

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September 29, 2025 45 mins

Walt Lillehei’s years of living and operating on the edge finally catch up with him. In Houston, rival surgeons attempt to resolve four decades of bad blood.

 

Presented by: Chris Pine
Written and Narrated by: Jamie Napoli

 
Executive Producers: Cristina Everett for iHeartPodcasts; Dub Cornett and Jason Ross for OSO Studios; Gerald Imber; Eric A. Rose, M.D.; John Mankiewicz; Joshua Paul Johnson; and Jamie Napo...

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