Mike Fincke says doctors still do not know cause of NASA medical evacuation

Mike Fincke describes NASA's first medical evacuation

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (AP) – Astronaut Mike Fincke, whose illness led to NASA's first medical evacuation earlier this year, says doctors have yet to establish why he became suddenly unwell aboard the International Space Station.

Fincke, a veteran of four spaceflights, was having dinner on 7 January after preparing for a spacewalk scheduled for the following day when the incident occurred.

Unable to speak and with no recollection of feeling pain, he was swiftly assisted by concerned crewmates, who saw that he was in difficulty and contacted flight surgeons on Earth.

"It was completely out of the blue. It was just amazingly quick," he said during an interview with The Associated Press at Houston's Johnson Space Center.

The 59-year-old retired Air Force colonel said the episode continued for about 20 minutes, after which he felt well. He added that he remains well now.

He had never encountered anything similar before the episode, nor has it happened again since.

Medical teams have excluded a heart attack, and Fincke said he was not choking. However, all other possibilities remain under consideration, including a potential link to his 549 days in weightlessness.

He was five and a half months into his most recent International Space Station mission when the problem hit like "a very, very fast lightning bolt."

"My crewmates definitely saw that I was in distress," he said, noting that all six crew members gathered around him.

"It was all hands on deck within just a matter of seconds."

Medical tests after the International Space Station incident

Fincke said he cannot disclose further details about the medical incident. According to him, NASA wants to make sure other astronauts will not fear that a medical emergency could compromise their privacy.

The space station's ultrasound equipment proved useful during the event, Fincke said, and he has undergone many tests since coming back to Earth.

NASA is reviewing the medical records of other astronauts to determine whether comparable incidents may have occurred in space, he said.

Late last month, Fincke publicly identified himself as the astronaut who had fallen ill, bringing an end to widespread public speculation.

He continues to regret that his illness forced the cancellation of the spacewalk – which would have been his 10th but the first for crewmate Zena Cardman – and led to an early return for Cardman and their two other crewmates.

SpaceX returned the crew on 15 January, more than a month ahead of schedule, and they were taken directly to hospital.

"I've been very lucky to be super healthy. So this was very surprising for everyone," he said.

Fincke still hopes to return to space

Fincke only stopped apologising to everyone after NASA's new administrator, Jared Isaacman, instructed him to do so.

"This wasn't you. This was space, right?" his colleagues assured him. "You didn't let anybody down."

Remaining optimistic, Fincke hopes he may one day be able to travel to space again.