Barry Sanders reveals he suffered heart attack last year, hopes to raise awareness

The legendary Detroit Lions running back believes his story can help others

By Andy Backstrom, Contributing writer

Barry Sanders revealed in an interview with CBS Sports he suffered a heart attack last June during Father’s Day weekend while on a recruiting visit for his son.

At the time, the former Detroit Lions superstar running back publicly announced on social media he had experienced a heart-related “heath scare,” although Sanders has since opened up about the medical emergency in “The Making of a Heart Attack,” an A&E special that will premiere Saturday at 1 p.m. ET and will highlight the hidden risks of heart attacks and strokes.

“I couldn’t believe it, honestly,” Sanders, 56, told CBS Sports. “I thought it was like heartburn, but it just kind of persisted.”

Sanders explained in the interview that he woke up that day with a burning sensation in his chest. Before his son’s recruiting visit wrapped, he drove himself to the emergency room, where tests indicated that Sanders’ enzyme levels were alarmingly high and still increasing.

A heart catheter procedure determined that Sanders had actually suffered a heart attack.

“Of all things, I don’t know why, that just never entered my mind,” Sanders said, via CBS Sports. “I’m learning through this process that there aren’t necessarily any warning signs, unless you do what we’re encouraging people to do, which is to go the doctor, get tested for LDLC levels, or bad cholesterol. That’s the only way to find out if you have high cholesterol. It’s not something you’re going to be able to feel. You don’t have to fit a certain physical profile.”