Vegas teen thanks Dignity Health St. Joseph’s medical team who saved his life after suffering cardiac arrest in class

Advanced life support technology gives teen chance to return to football sidelines

(PHOENIX – Nov. 11, 2025) – A college freshman is back on the sidelines this football season as a coach for his alma mater in Las Vegas  after going into cardiac arrest in his  high school classroom last December and receiving lifesaving medical care at Dignity Health St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix. Now, CJ Henly, 19, and his family are back in the Valley to thank the medical team who gave the teen a second chance through advanced life support technology.

“Growing up, my life revolved around sports,” said CJ. “I am so thankful that the St. Joseph’s team was able to give me the opportunity to continue my passion of coaching football and studying sports media in college.”

Dec. 6, 2024 started off as an average day for CJ, a  6’7” star offensive lineman for Coronado High School located in a suburb outside of Las Vegas. He was donned in his favorite University of Nevada Las Vegas gear and ready for a fun spirit day at school. However, the excitement of that day quickly turned to panic for his mother, Danielle, an administrator at the school, when she learned her son suddenly slumped over during English class. Without warning, CJ had gone into cardiac arrest – his heart stopped and he wasn’t breathing.

“Nothing prepares you to see your child motionless on the ground as others perform CPR for 12 minutes to try and revive them,” said Danielle. “I am forever indebted to the quick action of our school nurse who used an automated external defibrillator (AED) to restart CJ’s heart as first responders arrived.”

CJ was rushed to nearby Dignity Health St. Rose Dominican Siena Hospital where he was put on an extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machine. This advanced life support technology is for patients whose lungs or heart are so severely damaged that they can't function adequately on their own. ECMO removes blood from the patient, oxygenates it with the artificial lung, and pumps it back into the body. This gives patients the chance to rest and  heal as they regain their strength or in severe cases, wait for an organ  transplant.

Despite the hospital’s best efforts, CJ needed a higher level of care to determine the cause of his cardiac arrest and stop the unexplained bleeding in his lungs. He was transferred to Siena’s sister hospital, Dignity Health St. Joseph’s in Phoenix Dec. 8.

“When CJ arrived at St. Joseph’s, he was heavily sedated, had aspiration pneumonia and completely relied on the ECMO machine to breathe,” said Dr. Raed Suyyagh, medical director of St. Joseph’s ECMO program. “Less than five percent of U.S. hospitals have ECMO programs. Our multidisciplinary team quickly assembled and  used our resources, clinical skillset and advanced technology to help CJ make a remarkable recovery.”

Over the next two days, CJ rapidly improved and doctors started weaning him off the ECMO machine. They say his age and physical fitness helped expedite his recovery as most patients can be on ECMO for weeks before they are strong enough to breathe on their own. 

While CJ continued to gain strength through physical and occupational therapy, doctors diagnosed the teen with ventricular fibrillation which is a life-threatening, abnormal cardiac arrhythmia described as chaotic electrical activity within the heart’s ventricles. With the support of his family, CJ underwent the placement of an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD). This device monitors the heart’s rhythm and serves as an emergency defibrillator.

CJ was discharged on Dec. 19, just in time to celebrate Christmas at home in Nevada with his family. Since then, CJ has graduated high school, started college at UNLV and  is now back at St. Joseph’s to thank his medical team for saving his life.

“I am glad I have the chance to say thank you to the St. Joseph’s team,” said CJ. “I am where I am today because of them.”

“We are so proud of how far CJ has come,” said Dr. Suyyagh. “It is amazing to watch him continue to live life to the fullest.”

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