Nicholas F. Carulli, MD, ACP

The title does not denigrate what Scripture says about the length of one’s life. Hebrews 9:27 states: “… it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.” That is a given. While it is true we may not be able to add or lessen the number of years given to us, I believe Dr. Carulli did just that. On my first visit for a physical exam, and after the requisite blood draw, Dr. Carulli found a particular ‘protein’ in my blood, the levels of which were extremely high. This type of protein can cause heart disease. I told him I’d never seen this particular item (along with several others) in previous blood screens done over the years. He informed me that most GP physicians do not request this type of blood test. But I am grateful that he did, that it is part of his regular screening process. During our conversation, he asked if anyone in my family had heart disease. I told him my dad, my uncle (his brother), and their father all died from heart disease. Dr. Carulli stated that while he did not know any of those men, he believed they may well have died of heart disease as a result of a high ‘protein’ count on their blood; the same protein he found in my blood count. He stated that if I were to have ignored this, my life would have ended as early as did theirs. He prescribed a particular statin that I have been faithfully taking since that first visit. The off the chart ‘red’ level for this bad protein dropped to the acceptable ‘green’ level, and has remained there ever since. Now that was a gift from the Lord. By God’s grace, I’ve outlived my dad, my uncle, and my grandfather. And as mentioned above, we all die at some point in time. But I remain firm in believing that the in-depth examination by Dr. Carulli had everything to do with keeping me around a little while longer. I cannot thank Dr. Carulli enough for the care he has provided, for the care he has shown to me over the years. And that goes for his staff as well. He is a great physician with a tender, caring heart. It is difficult to find those qualities in this day and age.