CNN Report: The Quest to Summit Everest in Just Seven Days with the Aid of Xenon
A group of four ex-military friends, including British lawmaker Al Carns, are set to embark on an ambitious expedition to summit Mount Everest in just seven days, aided by a novel technique involving the inhalation of the noble gas xenon. The team, which also includes a pilot, a businessman, and an entrepreneur, will fly from the UK to Kathmandu, where they will take a helicopter to base camp, before attempting to reach the summit of the 8,849-meter (29,032 feet) peak.
According to Lukas Furtenbach, CEO of Furtenbach Adventures, the team will begin their journey by inhaling xenon 10 days prior to the expedition. “Before you can go to climb Mount Everest, you need to adapt your body to the low levels of oxygen,” Furtenbach told CNN Travel. “You can do this in a traditional way — trekking to base camp and then several rotations on the mountain, and then, after weeks of acclimatizing, your body is ready to build enough red blood cells, and then you can start your summit attempt.”
The use of xenon is based on its ability to increase the body’s production of erythropoietin, also known as EPO, a hormone naturally produced by human kidneys to stimulate red blood cell production. Furtenbach claims that inhaling xenon can mimic the effects of high-altitude acclimatization, allowing climbers to reach the summit more quickly.
However, not all experts are convinced of the safety and efficacy of using xenon for high-altitude expeditions. The International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation (The UIAA) released a statement saying that there is no evidence that breathing in xenon improves performance in the mountains, and that its use can be dangerous.
Dr. Andrew Peacock, an emeritus professor in medicine at the University of Glasgow’s School of Cardiovascular & Metabolic Health, expressed skepticism about the effects of xenon on stimulating erythropoietin in such a short timeframe. “The effect on the red blood cells takes weeks,” he told CNN.
Furthermore, the UIAA noted that xenon has been banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) since 2014, and that its use as an anesthetic gas can have negative side effects, including impaired brain function, respiratory compromise, and even death.
Despite these concerns, Furtenbach remains confident in the safety and effectiveness of his xenon-reliant tour. “The less time you spend on the mountain, the less time you spend doing rotations on the mountain, the less exposure time you have to risks on the mountain, like avalanches, rock fall,” he told CNN.
The team’s expedition will be closely watched by experts and enthusiasts alike, as it seeks to push the boundaries of what is possible on the world’s highest mountain. While some may view this approach as a revolutionary breakthrough, others may see it as a reckless and ill-advised attempt to speed up the climbing process.
Climbing Everest has changed dramatically since Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay first successfully summited the mountain in 1953. With access to Sherpa guides, porters, supplemental oxygen, and top-of-the-range equipment, the mountain is far more accessible to hobbyists and tourists.
Will Cockrell, author of “Everest, Inc.,” noted that guiding outfits have long been dreaming up innovative ways of cutting expedition times. A classic expedition on Everest can take between six to 10 weeks and involves multiple rotations to camps on the mountain or its neighboring peaks so that the body acclimatizes to high altitude, before a final summit push.
The team, including Carns, Miller, Godlington, and Stazicker, who have also had careers in the armed services, seem comfortable with the risks involved. “We’re all from a military background, very specialist elements in the military,” Carns said. “Our whole careers have been built around the ability to balance risk, to take risk and mitigate it in the most effective ways.”
The outcome of this extraordinary expedition will be closely monitored by CNN and other news providers. Will the team succeed in their quest to summit Everest in seven days? Only time will tell.
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