Hemophilia put him in a wheelchair but can't keep him down

Ed Vailes lost his legs, but not his life, to hemophilia.

At 71, he's among the oldest people in the United States living with the chronic, inherited disease. People with hemophilia lack an enzyme that helps blood clot, meaning any injury can become a life-threatening emergency.

While playing a pickup game of football in 1954, he hit the dirt. An artery in his hip ruptured and refused to heal. He received more than 100 units of blood until, a year and a half later, the artery healed on its own.

At the end of that ordeal his leg bones snapped when doctors tried to stand him up. His muscles also atrophied because he spent so much time in bed, putting him in a wheelchair at the age of 15.

"Ever since then, I've learned to live an extremely careful life," Vailes said. "In reality, I don't view it as a handicap."

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