Who Needs a Lung Transplant?
Your doctor may recommend a lung transplant if you
have severe lung disease that's getting worse. If your condition is so serious
that other treatments don't work, lung transplant may be the only option.
Lung transplants most often are used to treat people
who have severe:
Applying to a Lung Transplant Program
Lung transplants are done in medical centers (large
hospitals) where the staff has a lot of organ transplant experience. If you
need a lung transplant, you must apply to a center's transplant program.
Transplant teams at the medical center manage all
aspects of the center's transplant program. Transplant team members may include
a:
- Thoracic (THOR-as-ik) surgeon. This is a doctor
who performs lung and chest surgery.
- Pulmonologist. This is a doctor who specializes
in lung diseases and conditions.
- Cardiologist. This is a doctor who specializes in
heart diseases and conditions.
- Respiratory technician. This is a person who
cares for people who have breathing and lung problems.
- Transplant coordinator. This is a person who
arranges the surgery.
Other team members may include a social worker,
psychiatrist, financial coordinator, and other specialists and medical
personnel, such as a nutritionist and nurses.
The transplant team will need to find out whether
you're a candidate for lung transplant. They will want to make sure you're
healthy enough to have the surgery and go through a recovery program
afterward.
To do this, they will ask about your medical
history. The team will want to know whether you have other serious illnesses or
conditions, such as cancer, HIV, or hepatitis. They also will ask whether
you've had a major chest surgery before. A previous chest surgery may make it
hard to do a lung transplant.
The team also will want to know whether you smoke or
use alcohol or drugs.
You also will have tests to determine whether you're
healthy enough for a lung transplant. Tests may include:
- Lung
function tests. These tests measure the size of your lungs, how much air
you can breathe in and out, how fast you can breathe air out, and how well your
lungs deliver oxygen to your blood.
- Blood
tests. Blood tests help doctors check for certain diseases and conditions.
They also help check the function of your organs and show how well treatments
are working.
- Chest
CT scan. This test creates precise pictures of the structures inside your
chest, such as your lungs.
- EKG
(electrocardiogram). This test detects and records the heart's electrical
activity.
- Echocardiogram.
This test uses sound waves to create pictures of your heart.
- Right
cardiac catheterization. This test measures blood pressure in the right
side of your heart. The results give clues about
heart
valve disease,
heart
failure, or lung problems.
You'll talk with team members to make sure you're
mentally and emotionally willing to accept the risks of the transplant process
and later treatment. The team may ask whether you have a good support network
of family and friends. |