Man who has lived inside iron lung for more than 70 years gives new update on his life

A man who has spent more than 70 years with an iron lung has provided a new update on his life.

Paul Alexander from Dallas, Texas has relied on the tank respirator - which helps pull air in and out of the lungs to simulate breathing - since he was six years old.

After the young boy went outside to play with his brother, he came back in with a fever, aches and pains in his muscles, as well as unexplained fatigue.

He was left paralysed from the neck down and unable to breathe for himself.

"I had become immobile; I don't think I could even talk, so the hospital staff put me on a gurney in a long hallway with all the other hopeless polio kids. Most of them were dead,” he explained.

Alexander woke up on the iron lung ward and has been attached to the machine ever since.

Despite the unfortunate circumstances, Alexander passed high school and went on to get two law degrees, write a book about his life, and spend years practising law and running his legal practice from a specially modified wheelchair.

Taking to his new TikTok page, Alexander has issued a new update in his life, a TikTok video series called 'Convos with Paul!'

In episode one he explained: "I have been paralysed and I live in an iron lung because I can't breathe on my own.

"I went to school in my iron lung. I am a lawyer now. I practised law for 30 years.

"I wrote a book and gave it to the world about me and my polio. And millions of people know my name today. I have goals and dreams of doing some more things before I go visit some place.

"And I plan to do and accomplish both goals with my friends.

"I want to talk to the world about polio and the millions of children not protected against polio.

"They have to be before there is another epidemic."

Commenting on the first episode, which has already got over 20 million views after being posted last week, one user said: "It blows my mind that modern science has not figured out something better. Good for you Paul for making such great strides in the face of adversity."

"These are the type of people we need to make famous and rich," another commented, as someone else wrote: "He's done more than most people in their lifetimes! What an inspiration."

Polio is a serious infection which has since become extremely rare in the UK due to the vaccination programme against it.

The polio vaccine is part of the NHS' routine childhood vaccination schedule.

The polio vaccine is given to children at 8, 12 and 16 weeks old as part of the 6-in-1 vaccine; 3 years, 4 months old as part of the 4-in-1 (DTaP/IPV) pre-school booster; 14 years old as part of the 3-in-1 (Td/IPV) teenage booster.

You need all 5 of these vaccinations to be fully vaccinated against polio.