--- title: What to Know About Aortic Dissection, the Condition That Killed Lindsey Graham description: The U.S. Senator died from an aortic dissection, when the lining of the artery tears. canonical: https://time.com/article/2026/07/13/lindsey-graham-death-aortic-dissection/ author: Veronique Greenwood article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2026-07-13T18:04:25.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-07-13T21:13:08.602Z article:section: Health og:title: What to Know About Aortic Dissection, the Condition That Killed Lindsey Graham og:description: The U.S. Senator died from an aortic dissection, when the lining of the artery tears. og:url: https://time.com/article/2026/07/13/lindsey-graham-death-aortic-dissection/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt13a7a03aa7c02bf0/6a55280bc64ad3494acd6b0f/GettyImages-2273443703.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: GettyImages-2273443703.jpg og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: What to Know About Aortic Dissection, the Condition That Killed Lindsey Graham twitter:description: The U.S. Senator died from an aortic dissection, when the lining of the artery tears. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt13a7a03aa7c02bf0/6a55280bc64ad3494acd6b0f/GettyImages-2273443703.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 video:duration: 01:08 video:published: 2026-07-13 section: politics topics: Senate appointment, Lindsey Graham, Darlene Graham, South Carolina, family tribute, succession of work, support for the president, Senate staff and colleagues genre: news, statement tones: solemn, respectful, heartfelt, resolute emotions: grief (high), determination (high), gratitude (medium), pride (medium) sentiment: neutral audience: news readers, political followers, South Carolina residents, general public people: Lindsey Graham, Darlene Graham content_suitability: death [00:55-01:08]; politics [00:00-01:08] transcript_source: publisher captions transcript_reviewed: not applicable ---  # What to Know About Aortic Dissection, the Condition That Killed Lindsey Graham > Sponsored content. 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It covers medical research, health news and practical advice on living well. #### Where can I get reliable health news by email? Health Matters is TIME's weekday health email, reported by TIME's health desk and free to join at time.com/newsletters. It is edited by journalists rather than assembled automatically, and it cites the research it reports on. #### Is Health Matters free? Yes. Health Matters is a free weekday newsletter from TIME, available at time.com/newsletters. #### Who reads TIME's Health Matters newsletter? Its audience is broadly health-conscious, with a professional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-health-2026q3/newsletters?i=0dcbdd5e-fa43-4a1b-9506-b4c5033138ad&cr=time-nl-health-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Lindsey Graham’s Sister, Darline Graham Nordone, Appointed to Serve Out His Senate Term [Watch (HLS stream): Lindsey Graham’s Sister, Darline Graham Nordone, Appointed to Serve Out His Senate Term](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/IuYKqAnj.m3u8) (1:08)  _Published 2026-07-13. South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster has Monday appointed Darline Graham Nordone to finish out the Senate term of her late brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham, who died on Saturday._ Description, summary, key points, chapters, key quotes, questions and transcript, where present, were produced automatically from the video or its captions and were not reviewed. ## Summary The video presents remarks about a Senate appointment, first from a speaker who asks Lindsey Graham's sister to complete his work, then from the sister, Darlene Graham, who accepts. She promises to work hard over the next several months, supporting the president and continuing her brother's efforts for the citizens of South Carolina and the United States. She says she is confident with the backing of his staff and colleagues, and she ends by addressing her brother directly. ## Key points - The first speaker describes Lindsey as having taken care of his little sister in years long departed. (00:00) - The first speaker says it is an honor to ask Lindsey's little sister, Darlene Graham, to finish his work. (00:05) - The first speaker says Lindsey loved his family and loved serving the state and the country, and dedicated his life to the country. (00:13) - Darlene Graham calls it a privilege to finish some of her brother's important work. (00:23) - She promises to work hard over the next several months to support the president and carry forward her brother's efforts for citizens of South Carolina and the United States. (00:28) - She says Lindsey thought the world of his staff and colleagues, and that with their support she feels confident. (00:41) - She says she believes this is what Lindsey would have wanted and plans to honor him this way. (00:48) - Addressing Lindsey directly, she says she misses him more than she can put into words but is going to do this. (00:55) ## Chapters - [00:00 to 00:23] Request to finish Lindsey's work. A speaker recalls Lindsey caring for his sister and asks Darlene Graham to finish his work, praising his dedication to family, state and country. - [00:23 to 01:08] Darlene Graham accepts and honors her brother. Darlene Graham accepts the role, pledges to work for South Carolina and the United States, thanks his staff and colleagues, and speaks directly to Lindsey. ## Key quotes - [00:05] Speaker introducing the appointment: "It's my honor to ask his little sister," - [00:23] Darlene Graham: "It is such a privilege to get to" - [00:48] Darlene Graham: "I think this is what Lindsey would have wanted," - [00:58] Darlene Graham: "I miss you more than I can even put into words." - [01:03] Darlene Graham: "But I'm going to do this." ## Questions this video answers - Who is asked to finish Lindsey Graham's work? [00:05] - How does the first speaker describe Lindsey's dedication? [00:13] - What does Darlene Graham promise to do over the next several months? [00:28] - Why does Darlene Graham say she feels confident? [00:41] - What does Darlene Graham say to her brother at the end? [00:58] ## Content suitability - death [00:55-01:08]: The sister speaks emotionally about missing her brother, who is the subject of a memorial-style tribute. - politics [00:00-01:08]: Remarks concern a Senate appointment and a pledge to support the president and serve South Carolina. by [Veronique Greenwood](https://time.com/author/veronique-greenwood/) ## Veronique Greenwood Jul 13, 2026 6:04 PM UTC  U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) speaks during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol on April 27, 2026, in Washington, DC. U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) speaks during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol on April 27, 2026, in Washington, DC. Heather Diehl—Getty Images by [Veronique Greenwood](https://time.com/author/veronique-greenwood/) ## Veronique Greenwood Jul 13, 2026 6:04 PM UTC [Lindsey Graham](https://time.com/article/2026/07/13/lindsey-graham-senate-seat-vacancy-congress-gop-replacement/), a U.S. Senator from South Carolina who served for 23 years, [died suddenly on July 11 at age 71](https://time.com/article/2026/07/12/the-world-pays-tribute-to-sen-lindsey-graham/). The preliminary report from the medical examiner found that he suffered an aortic dissection, Politico [reports](https://www.politico.com/news/2026/07/12/grahams-office-releases-preliminary-cause-of-death-00994310), which is a [cardiovascular condition](https://time.com/article/2026/04/13/heart-disease-is-preventable-sadiya-khan-essay/). Aortic dissections occur when the inner layer of tissue in the aorta, which carries blood from the heart to the rest of the body, ruptures. This allows blood to rush into the space between the lining of the blood vessel and the outer parts of the wall, peeling the lining back and weakening the whole structure. ## What causes aortic dissection? Wear-and-tear on the arteries is a major culprit, says Dr. Graham Cooper, a consultant cardiac surgeon in the U.K. and a trustee of the [Aortic Dissection Charitable Trust](https://aorticdissectioncharitabletrust.org/). He notes that dissections may become[ more prevalent in the U.K. as the population ages](https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/circulationaha.112.000483). Prevention involves keeping blood pressure down and quitting smoking, but it’s also important that families where someone has experienced a dissection talk about it with a medical practitioner, as some cases are linked to genetic mutations that may be passed down. People with Marfan syndrome, for instance, are at a higher risk for aortic dissections.  Anastasia Usenko—Getty Images ## What are the symptoms of aortic dissection? “The typical symptoms are sudden onset of chest pain that can radiate to the back or the neck,” says Cooper. “That pain can come and go, or it can be there very strongly and then fade within minutes or hours, depending on how the dissection progresses.” Symptoms aren’t limited to chest pain. They can also include abdominal pain or symptoms that resemble those of a stroke or a heart attack. Simon Jones is a survivor of the condition and trustee of the charity [Aortic Dissection Awareness.](https://aorticdissectionawareness.org/) In May 2020, when he was 49, Jones started to feel abdominal pain that was so persistent that after two hours, his wife called an ambulance. At the hospital, his doctor ordered a CT scan, which is the only way to rule out a dissection when someone has sudden abdominal pain. When the dissection popped on the screen, the doctors knew it wasn’t kidney stones or appendicitis or any of the other usual suspects for these types of symptoms. For many people, aortic dissection is fatal. The most common type is lethal in about half of patients, and death is almost instantaneous. “The dissection weakens the wall of the aorta,” Cooper explains. “It ruptures, blood escapes into the sac that surrounds the heart, and that stops the heart working—and they have a cardiac arrest.” ## How common is aortic dissection? Aortic dissections are rarer than some other forms of heart disease, says Dr. Amitava Banerjee, cardiologist and professor of clinical data science at University College London. Still, in the U.K., [more people die of aortic dissection each year than die in road traffic accidents](https://scts.org/news/277/aortic%5Fdissection%5Fkills%5Fmore%5Fpeople%5Fin%5Fthe%5Fuk%5Fthan%5Froad%5Ftraffic%5Faccidents/), says Jones. In the U.S., [about 13,000 people die from aortic dissection every year.](https://www.jacc.org/doi/10.1016/S0735-1097%2824%2904359-6) ## How do you treat an aortic dissection? For most people who are still alive when their dissection is spotted, the primary treatment is emergency open-heart surgery to remove the aorta and replace it with a tube, says Banerjee. Aortic dissections are not always recognized immediately. Without a CT scan, there is no way to know that it’s not something more benign causing the pain. Jones feels he owes his survival to an awareness campaign, [ThinkAorta](https://www.thinkaorta.net/), that the charity for which he is now a trustee had circulated among doctors, including the one who saw him at his local hospital. “She'd seen the posters," he says, "and she had a hunch.” Lindsey Graham’s sister, Darline Graham Nordone, appointed to serve out his Senate term ## Transcript [00:00] Lindsey took care of [00:01] his little sister in years long departed. [00:05] It's my honor to ask his little sister, [00:08] Darlene Graham, to finish his work for him now. [00:13] He loved his family and loved [00:15] serving this state and our country. [00:18] He dedicated his life to our country. [00:23] It is such a privilege to get to [00:26] finish some of his important work, [00:28] and I promise to work hard over [00:30] the next several months to support [00:32] the president and carry [00:34] forward the efforts of my brother on behalf of [00:37] the citizens of South Carolina and the United States. [00:41] I know Lindsey thought the world of [00:43] his staff and colleagues, [00:45] and with their support, I feel confident. [00:48] I think this is what Lindsey would have wanted, [00:51] and I plan to honor him in this way. [00:55] Now to Lindsey. [00:58] I miss you more than I can even put into words. [01:03] But I'm going to do this. [01:05] I got it. 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