A US hospital has removed a man from the heart transplant list for refusing to have the COVID-19 vaccine.
DJ Ferguson, 31, has a hereditary heart condition that causes his lungs and heart to fill with blood and fluid and has been denied a life-saving operation.
He was previously prioritised for a transplant at Brigham and Women's hospital near Boston, Massachusetts according to CBS Boston.
The hospital said the decision for removing Ferguson from the list was based on the chances of the patient having a successful operation.
"Like many other transplant programs in the United States - the COVID-19 vaccine is one of several vaccines and lifestyle behaviours required for transplant candidates in the Mass General Brigham system in order to create both the best chance for a successful operation and also the patient's survival after transplantation," the hospital said in a statement.
David Ferguson - DJ's father - has spoken out passionately in support of his son.
"My son has gone to the edge of death to stick to his guns and he's been pushed to the limit," David said.
"It's kind of against his basic principles - he doesn't believe in it. It's a policy they are enforcing and so, because he won't get the shot, they took him off the list [for] a heart transplant."
DJ - who is a father of two - remains in Brigham and Women's hospital but his family aren't sure what to do as he may be too weak to transfer to another hospital.
"At this point, DJ is unable to leave the hospital until he gets the heart surgery he needs," DJ's wife, Heather Dawson wrote on Facebook.
"Without the surgery, his lungs and heart will continue to fill up with blood and fluid (on top of everything else that's going on)."
David said his son had received excellent care at the hospital, but they do not agree with the policy.
"I think my boy is fighting pretty damn courageously and he has integrity and principles he really believes in and that makes me respect him all the more. It's his body. It's his choice," David said.
"We are aggressively pursuing all options, but we are running out of time."
Fellow doctors have come out in support of the hospital's decision saying being vaccinated is necessary for the transplant.
"Post any transplant, kidney, heart whatever, your immune system is shut off," head of medical ethics at New York University Grossman School of Medicine Dr. Arthur Caplan said. "The flu could kill you, a cold could kill you, COVID could kill you.
"The organs are scarce, we are not going to distribute them to someone who has a poor chance of living when others who are vaccinated have a better chance post-surgery of surviving."
