What is an aortic tear? The fatal condition doctors compare to a knife to the heart

A doctor described the condition that was the cause of death for South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham as being similar to a “knife to the heart.”

Dr. Robert Aru of Thomas Jefferson University told ABC News that his patients suffering from an aortic dissection present with “the worst chest or back pain of their life that is similar to a ripping or stabbing sensation.”