Ryan Campbell's heart stopped beating on April 16, 2022. For the WA cricket legend, colloquially known as Cambo, the date will be forever etched in his memory as the day that he suffered a massive cardiac arrest and, against all odds, fully recovered. 

While on a family holiday in the UK, Cambo collapsed at a playground in front of his kids. He was placed in an induced coma at NHS Royal Stoke University Hospital, with doctors giving him just a 7% chance of survival. 

"Like most 50-year-old men, I thought I was immortal. My health had never been an issue, and I probably just expected that to continue and took things for granted," Cambo reflects.

Testing later revealed he experienced a cardiac arrest, though the cause remains unclear. Cambo credits his recovery to the exceptional care he received in the hospital and the quick-thinking actions of a parent at the playground who immediately administered CPR and saved his life. 

For Cambo’s family, recovery seemed impossible. Yet after 21 days in the hospital, including 7 spent in an induced coma, Cambo emerged on the other side as a passionate advocate for men's health. 

“I have no memory of the seven days that I was in an induced coma, but hearing the tales from my wife, my best mate who flew in to support her, as well as from doctors and nurses, I hate to think of the pain and feeling of helplessness my wife and family must have felt.” says Cambo.

Australian data shows that men continue to die at an earlier age than women and recent health metrics show that three in five men will suffer a premature death from preventable causes including avoidable risks such as obesity, substance abuse, suicide and smoking. 

“Men seem to have a culture about being ‘brave’ or suffering in silence, or even worse, ignoring symptoms that just don’t feel right. We need to take ownership of our own health, if not for ourselves, then for our partners, our children, our friends,” says Cambo. 

“For a developed country, with such a great standard of living, the fact that 50% of West Australian men live with one or more chronic health conditions and 60% of West Australian men will die early from preventable causes is just ridiculous.” 

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