An American man lives 555 days with an artificial heart hanging on his back!

A young American managed to live without a heart for more than a year and a half, and even played sports with his friends all that time.

In the event that stunned everyone without exception.

Stan Larkin, 25, was diagnosed with familial cardiomyopathy, a type of heart failure that can strike people without warning and kill them regardless of their health status.

Stan had no idea he had the fatal condition, until he collapsed while playing basketball.

Stan Larkin survived with the help of an "artificial heart" strapped to his back for 555 days, while waiting for a heart transplant in a case that stunned the medical world.

The condition is also associated with sudden death among athletes, and Stan's brother Dominic also suffers from it.

Stan was in desperate need of a new heart, which meant he would have to stay in the hospital so he could be monitored until the transplant.

Instead, doctors at the University of Michigan installed the 13-pound SyncArdia total artificial heart machine while Stan waited for a suitable donor.

A temporary total artificial heart is used when the heart fails on both sides, but unlike regular heart machines — which usually work with only one side of the heart — they work with both.

The device allowed Stan to lead a "normal" life and even play basketball.

Stan eventually underwent a heart transplant.

"I had my transplant two weeks ago and I feel like I can jog while we talk. I want to thank the donor who gave me his heart. I would like to meet his family one day. I hope they will want to meet me," he told Science Daily.

Follow our latest local and sports news and the latest political and economic developments via Google news