Final U.S. polio iron-lung survivor dies at 78 in Oklahoma
Martha Lillard, diagnosed with polio as a child and dependent on an iron lung for most of her life, died at 78 in Oklahoma, becoming the last U.S. polio patient to rely on the life‑support device. A death certificate lists chronic pulmonary failure and post-polio syndrome as causes; she lived with disability from childhood, attended school with a helper, and later built a life online that led to marriage with a man from Egypt after meeting him in a chat. She battled COVID-19 in later years, and long‑haul COVID-19 is noted as a contributing factor in her decline.
