The brother of Paul Alexander, the man who spent 70 years in an iron lung, has paid tribute following Alexander's passing.
Alexander's journey began in 1952 when he contracted polio at the age of six, leaving him paralyzed. He relied on the iron lung, a mechanical ventilator, to assist his breathing ever since.
According to The Guardian, Alexander's battle with polio began one day while playing outside his Dallas home. His condition rapidly deteriorated, leaving him barely able to move, swallow, or cough.
Against the odds, a doctor intervened with an emergency tracheotomy, saving his life but leaving him dependent on the iron lung for breathing.
During his youth and adult life, he was able to be without the machine for a few moments each day and would go on to have a successful career as a lawyer, and an author.
Alexander passed away on Monday aged 78, as detailed by a GoFundMe page.
His brother, Philip, led the heartfelt tributes, commemorating Alexander's love for life. "He loved wine, good food, and women," Philip wrote in a poignant Facebook post. "It was an honor to be part of someone's life who was as admired as he was. He touched and inspired millions of people, and that is no exaggeration."
Recalling his brother's fame, Philip went on: "If YouTube him, you will see videos made of him in every continent. Friends would tell me all the time how they encountered other people who just brought Paul up in a conversation.
"It personally happened to me at a restaurant on the Amazon river from 2 guys who happened to be visiting from Argentina. Just brought him up when they heard I was from Texas."
He went on: "To me Paul was just a brother..same as yours..loving, giving advice, and scolding when necessary, and also a pain in the ass..normal brother stuff. He commanded a room..What a flirt!"
Alexander's cousin, Margaret Moore, also shared a tribute on Facebook, describing him as her "true hero." "I know he is loving freedom of not being in an iron lung," she wrote.
Alexander was a testament to perseverance. In his own words: "No matter where you're from or what your past is, or the challenges that you could be facing, you can truly do anything. You've just got to set your mind to it and work hard."
According to the World Health Organization: "wild poliovirus cases have decreased by over 99% since 1988, from an estimated 350,000 cases in more than 125 endemic countries to six reported cases in 2021.
The disease only remains a threat to those who have not been vaccinated.
