Reasons why you might not be able to have a lung transplant You are too ill or frail to cope with the surgery and aftercare. You have recently had cancer, a serious infection, a heart attack or a stroke. You may struggle taking the immunosuppressant medicines after a lung transplant.
Exclusion criteria for lung transplant
You may not be a good candidate if you have a body mass index (BMI) above 35. Before you can begin the lung transplant evaluation process, you must be free of: Cancer for at least 5 years. There are exceptions for certain types of cancers.
The traditional age limit for lung transplantation is 65 years. At Mayo Clinic, however, we will evaluate individuals older than 65 who do not have significant disease processes besides their lung diseases.
Waiting periods for a lung transplant in Australia can be up to 2 years and depend on the blood and tissue types of the recipients and donors. The waiting times are different in each state depending on the population of the state and the number of people that are on the waiting list.
CHRONIC REJECTION
The lungs have higher rates of rejection compared to other transplanted organs, as lungs tend to have a stronger immune response than other organs. The most common long-term complication of lung transplant is chronic rejection.
If you are going to receive a lung from an organ donor who has died (cadaver), you will be placed on a waiting list of the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS.) The average person waits around two years for a single lung transplant, and as long as three years for two lungs.
The St Vincent's Hospital Heart and Lung Transplantation program is one of the largest and longest running programs in Australia, with survival rates which exceed that of the international benchmarks.
The cost of performing a lung transplant is between $70,000 and $100,000 per patient. WA patients awaiting surgery in Sydney or Melbourne have their expenses met by the State Government.
In fact, acute cellular rejection of lung transplants occurs in up to 90 percent of patients.
Because lungs are so fragile, life expectancy is shorter than with other solid organ transplants. Recovery from the surgery can take up to six months. But it can help you breathe better and improve your quality of life. However, you'll need to take immunosuppressants for the rest of your life.
Because of the fragility of the lung, the survival rates for lung transplant patients are not as good as for other solid organ transplants, with a five-year survival rate of about 50-60%. The biggest limiting factor in lung transplant is having enough suitable lung donors.
The world's longest double-lung transplant patient dies at 60 in North Carolina. In 1990, Howell Graham was so weakened by cystic fibrosis that he got winded brushing his teeth.
A lung transplant (or heart and lung transplant) can only be successful if the blood and tissue type of the organ donor and the organ recipient match.
For many patients, a lung transplant is lifesaving and not only extends their life expectancy but improves their quality of life. The lung transplant survival rate one year after transplant is 88 percent. After 3 years, the lung transplant survival rate is 73 percent.
Nationwide, about 1,500 people are on waiting lists for a lung or a lung-and-heart transplant, according to the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), which manages organ allocation on behalf of the federal government.
Generally, Part A also covers: Services for heart, lung, kidney, pancreas, intestine, and liver organ transplants.
Accordingly, survival after a lung transplant is higher in Australia than anywhere else. Regardless of the form of transplant (single lung, double lung or heart and double lung) the majority of patients (approximately 93%) will live at least a year or more following their transplant with 70% living 5 or more years.
8 In conjunction, long term survival has continued to improve; current reported survival of bilateral lung transplant recipients at 1, 3 and 5 years is 90%, 74% and 68%, respectively,8 which exceeds international survival rates of 82%, 69% and 59%, respectively (Box 7).
You may feel tired while you are healing. It can take 2 to 3 months for your energy to fully return. Your doctor may advise you to work with a respiratory therapist to make your new lung stronger. After the transplant, you must take medicine to keep your body from rejecting the new lung.
You can expect to stay in the hospital for 3 to 4 weeks. The lung transplant team will monitor your progress to make sure your body isn't rejecting the lungs and that you aren't developing an infection or other problems. You'll begin rehabilitation, including physical therapy and breathing and speech exercises.
A lung transplant usually takes between 4 and 12 hours, depending on the complexity of the operation. After you've had a general anaesthetic, a breathing tube will be placed down your throat so your lungs can be ventilated.
After your lung transplant—major surgery for which you prepared carefully—you'll likely enjoy a significantly improved quality of life. Most patients who have a transplant due to the effects of pulmonary fibrosis (PF) breathe better, increase their activity, and can discontinue supplemental oxygen.
It usually takes at least 3 to 6 months to fully recover from transplant surgery. For the first 6 weeks after surgery, avoid pushing, pulling or lifting anything heavy. You'll be encouraged to take part in a rehabilitation programme involving exercises to build up your strength.