I've researched food slang ("hot dog" and more) for many years. This
is from a post made yesterday to the American Dialect Society.

Hey, doesn't cabbage _prevent_ CABG?


Subj: Cabbage (CABG, or Coronary Artery Bypass Graft) (1985)
Date: 9/5/2004 5:08:36 PM Eastern Standard Time
From: Bapopik
To:

CABBAGE + CABG--1,960 Google hits, 42 Google Groups hits

Not in HDAS. Not in CDS. They don't pay me all this "cabbage" for
nothing.

(GOOGLE NEWS)
Half a million Americans have heart bypass surgery annually
Sabin Russell, Chronicle Medical Writer Saturday, September 4, 2004
San Francisco Chronicle

Former President Bill Clinton's impending coronary artery bypass graft
surgery is the most common heart operation performed in the United
States, with more than half a million Americans undergoing the
procedure each year.
(...)
Because the replacement blood vessels are essentially grafted into
place, the formal name for the surgery is Coronary Artery Bypass Graft
-- CABG. In the slang of the medical office, it's called "Cabbage.''
It's a major source of revenue for hospitals. A single Cabbage can
cost $50,000.


(GOOGLE GROUPS)
Introduction: Managed Ca A Crime Against Humanity
.... A major form of surgery that has been developed since the 1970s,
is the
coronary-artery bypass graft, or CABG (pronounced ``cabbage''). ...
misc.handicap - Oct 29, 1996 by John Covici - View Thread (1 article)

Why is acronyms/initialism in American English?
.... YOU] enjoy hearing an American hospital house-staff officer saying
that a patient
had had a "cabbage", the common pronounciation of CABG, Coronary
Artery ...
alt.usage.english - Sep 11, 1996 by nancy g. - View Thread (29
articles)

Time to stop writing about slang
.... left inside. CABG n. (pronounced cabbage) a Coronary Artery Bypass
Graft, commonly called "coronary bypass." Rel. cabbage patch ...
sci.med.nursing - Jun 5, 1995 by John D. Raudoy - View Thread (2
articles)


(PROQUEST HISTORICAL NEWSPAPERS)
1. These Days .......; Stick to the Record
By George Sokolsky. The Washington Post and Times Herald (1954-1959).
Washington, D.C.: Jan 31, 1956. p. 27 (1 page)

2. Personalities
By Chuck Conconi. The Washington Post (1974-Current file). Washington,
D.C.: Jul 14, 1983. p. F3 (1 page)

3. Only Foolin'
BY WILLIAM SAFIRE. New York Times (1857-Current file). New York, N.Y.:
Dec 1, 1985. p. SM16 (2 pages)
Second page:
"In accordance with my profession's love of terse acronyms," writes
Dr. Dworkin, "the coronary artery bypass graft had become shortened to
CABG, pronounced 'cabbage,'" The acronym can be used as a noun ("He
had his cabbage last Tuesday") or a verb ("He was cabbaged last
week").

"Sometimes a CABG will fail," the doctor notes sadly, "becoming
totally occluded by blood clot. I have thought of referring to this as
a 'stuffed cabbage,' but lacked the moxie."