For the first time, doctors are able to use a minimally invasive technique to save the lives of people who otherwise might have died from a type of aneurysm.

Now, doctors at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia can use tiny catheters to place stents in the aorta to strengthen it and stop the aneurysm from blowing, reported WCAU-TV in Philadelphia.

The Food and Drug Administration approved the stent in March, and the University of Pennsylvania has now begun FDA-required training for surgeons nationwide on how to use it.

A thoracic aortic aneurysm is a weakening of the wall of the aorta -- the largest artery in your body, which originates at your heart. When it bubbles out, it can burst and the patient often dies.

"It's called the silent killer because it's often very difficult to know that you have an aneurysm. Your first symptom is often your last," said Dr. Jeffrey Carpenter.

Lucille Ball died because she had an aortic aneurysm that burst. The same thing happened to George C. Scott, Conway Twitty and Albert Einstein.

"Very few people understand that aneurysms are caused by cigarette smoking," Carpenter said.

Bill Tinker had a very large aneurysm. There was no way that Tinker could have survived a classic open operation, but he could go through the new procedure.

A catheter is threaded through the groin and up into the aorta, where it releases a stent to strengthen the vessel's weak wall.

Tinker needed three stents to fix his huge aneurysm.

The stent is made of Gortex, the same material found in outdoor clothing, which has an outer metallic support structure. Gortex is also used to insulate the wiring of the space shuttle. In this procedure, the Gortex is used to keep the blood in the aorta so it doesn't feed the aneurysm.

It is the first FDA-approved grafting system for treating aneurysms of the descending thoracic aorta. The flexible tube comes in a range of lengths and diameters.

Tinker said he feels very lucky.

"Like I won the lottery," Tinker said.

The Penn doctors who led the study on these stents -- Carpenter and Dr. Joseph Bavaria -- said the procedure is much safer than a regular operation. Patients also recover much faster.

John Ritter did not have an aortic aneurysm; he had an aortic dissection, in which the wall of the aorta splits and then ruptures. Doctors are now trying to find a way to use a stent for that condition, as well.