Slayer of hangovers, saviour of parties and post-pub pints, pizza is a holy food designed to make us all better.

It also just saved this man's life. For Kirk Alexander, a 48-year-old man from Salem, Oregon, a love of Domino's pizza proved essential in his darkest hour. Kirk is a regular at his Salem Domino's restaurant, ordering food from them everyday for the past 10 YEARS. As store manager Sarah Fuller explained to BuzzFeed News, Kirk typically orders Domino's chicken wings, pasta, sandwiches, and sometimes pizza nearly every night around midnight for the past decade. So when Kirk didn't make an order for over a week, staff were worried where their pizza-loving friend has disappeared to. After 11 days had passed, Sarah sent Tracey Hamblen, one of the restaurant’s drivers, to Alexander’s home to check in on him. When Tracey arrived at Kirk's home, she found his lights and television on, but no response at the door. Sensing something was off, Tracey returned to the Domino's restaurant and called emergency services to Kirk's house, where two deputy sheriffs investigated and found Kirk asking for help. In a statement made on Facebook by the Marion County Sheriff’s Department, the deputies managed to force themselves into Kirk's house where they found him "down and in need of immediate medical attention." Kirk Alexander was then rushed to Salem Hospital where he is in stable condition. "The Sheriff’s Office would like to personally thank Mr Hamblen for his quick actions and willingness to take time out of his day to care for others," said the sheriff’s office in a statement. So you see, pizza really can save your life.

Sarah Fuller has said that a number of staff at Salem Domino's have since visited Kirk Alexander in hospital

"They become family here at Domino’s and we do what we can to help them out," she said. Here's hoping they treat him to a Mighty Meaty when he gets out.   This article originally appeared on JOE.co.uk