A 24-year-old’s heart attack case exposes a risk doctors still underestimate
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There are definitely more younger people coming in with heart attacks. There’s data to back that up.
—Deepak Bhatt, MD
For most clinicians, myocardial infarction in a 24-year-old still triggers a reflexive double-take. For Faye Greenwood, it became a life-altering reality—one complicated not only by biology, but by age bias, communication barriers, and delayed care. []
Greenwood, a fashion and lifestyle influencer from the UK, was on vacation in Paris last July with her now-fiancé, Ailbhe Lower, when she developed chest pains and began vomiting.
What followed, she recalls, was unlike anything she had ever felt: intense pain, disorientation, and what she described as “a feeling of doom, like the world was closing in.” []
Despite these classic red flags, it allegedly took 6.5 hours before she was admitted to the hospital. Greenwood's fiancé later attributed the delay to translation issues—and to clinicians struggling to reconcile her symptoms with her age.
However, heart attacks can—and do—occur in younger populations, noted Deepak Bhatt, MD, director of the Mount Sinai Fuster Heart Hospital, in an article about the emerging trend of heart attacks in young patients. “There are definitely more younger people coming in with heart attacks. There’s data to back that up," he said. []
Related: 30-year-old athlete suffers fatal heart attack—could you have seen this coming?When bias clouds clinical judgment
Young patients, especially women, are still less likely to be triaged quickly for acute coronary syndromes.[] Greenwood’s case underscores how that cognitive bias can persist even when symptoms are textbook.
Her age, coupled with the circumstances (an unfamiliar healthcare system, a foreign tourist, a language barrier), created just enough friction to slow things down—with enormous consequences.
Doctors remain uncertain about the exact cause of her heart attack. Greenwood had a prior diagnosis of dilated cardiomyopathy, but she has been told it may not have played a role. What is clear is that her course was severe: She ultimately required a heart transplant.
Back in the UK, Greenwood was initially warned she might wait up to a year for a donor. Instead, she received a transplant and was discharged in just over 4 months—a relatively rapid turnaround in a process that is often agonizingly slow.
A patient message clinicians should amplify
Greenwood is now using her platform to urge people—especially young people—not to ignore symptoms or downplay concerns because of age.
"If you think anything could be wrong, even a very small thing, just definitely get it checked out or push the doctors to check you out," she said. []
This case isn’t about rarity—it’s about recognition. Young patients do have heart attacks, and when they do, delays are often driven by assumptions rather than atypical symptoms.
For clinicians, Greenwood’s story is a reminder to:
Treat chest pain and associated symptoms seriously, regardless of age, gender, or perceived risk profile.
Be alert to how language barriers and system friction can compound diagnostic delay.
Recognize that “unlikely” diagnoses still occur—and that disbelief can cost time patients don’t have.