S1E68: The ex-vaper who had to ‘wash’ his lungs multiple times: Here's his story

Many people switch from smoking to vaping for different reasons. Synopsis: Join Natasha Ann Zachariah at The Usual Place every Thursday as she unpacks the latest current affairs with guests. For Mr Muhammad Dandiar Rosli, he saw vaping as a cheaper alternative to smoking, so he decided to give it a try. But it nearly cost him his life. Just a month after he started vaping in 2020, he ended up in hospital after feeling breathless and coughing up thick, yellow phlegm. He thought he had contracted Covid-19, but a bronchoscopy revealed that he had pulmonary alveolar proteinosis – a rare lung disease where the air sacs are clogged with protein and fatty material, making breathing difficult. That marked the start of a long recovery that included two hospital stays and four procedures to “wash out” his lungs. What he underwent is called a lung lavage, where sterile saline is used to wash away the abnormal build-up of protein from the lungs.  Five years on, the memory of the treatment – and the hefty medical bill – still affects him today. Mr Dandiar, a private-hire driver, drops by The Usual Place podcast to talk about undergoing the lung lavage procedures and the difficulty of quitting vaping. Highlights (click/tap above): 2:08 The failed attempt to save money by vaping  9:08 “It was too painful, I had to shutdown,” Dandiar on being hospitalised with pulmonary alveolar proteinosis.  10:29 The process of lung washing 16:07 Restarting to vape after his first hospitalisation 25:54 Why quitting is so difficult Read Natasha Ann Zachariah’s articles: https://str.sg/iSXm Follow The Usual Place podcast on IG: https://www.instagram.com/theusualplacepodcast Follow Natasha on LinkedIn: https://str.sg/v6DN Filmed by: Studio+65 Edited by: Teo Tong Kai and Chen Junyi Executive producers: Danson Cheong, Elizabeth Khor & Ernest Luis Editorial producer: Lynda Hong Follow The Usual Place Podcast and get notified for new episode drops every Thursday: Channel: https://str.sg/5nfm Apple Podcasts: https://str.sg/9ijX Spotify: https://str.sg/cd2P YouTube: https://str.sg/theusualplacepodcast Feedback to: [email protected] SPH Awedio app: https://www.awedio.sg --- Follow more ST podcast channels: All-in-one ST Podcasts channel: https://str.sg/wvz7 Get more updates: http://str.sg/stpodcasts --- Get The Straits Times app, which has a dedicated podcast player section: The App Store: https://str.sg/icyB Google Play: https://str.sg/icyX -- #tup #tuptrSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.