About 5 out of 10 people will survive for at least 5 years after having a lung transplant, with many people living for at least 10 years. There have also been reports of some people living for 20 years or more after a lung transplant.
The median survival rate after a single-lung transplant is 4.6 years. Double-lung recipients tend to do better, with a median survival rate of 6.6 years. 1 Of course, some people live much longer. This article discusses general survival rates and what to expect after surgery.
Although some people have lived 10 years or more after a lung transplant, only about half the people who undergo the procedure are still alive after five years.
Lung transplants and life expectancy
People can live for 5, 10, or even 20 years after having one. About 87 percent of CF patients who receive lung transplants will live another year. Close to 50 percent of those who receive a lung transplant will survive for an extra 9 years.
Then at age 28 doctors offered him the stark and risky choice of a double lung transplant — first of its kind at UNC Hospitals and likely the Southeast. Graham gambled and won, beating what his own surgeon called 50-50 odds and living another 32 years — the world's longest survival.
Reimplantation response. Reimplantation response is a common complication affecting almost all people with a lung transplant. The effects of surgery and the interruption to the blood supply cause the lungs to fill with fluid.
There is a large variety of causes of death after lung transplantation with a dominant role of infection, CLAD and carcinoma. With increasing follow-up time, infection becomes less prevalent and CLAD and carcinoma are observed more frequently.
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.
A double lung transplant is more common, but a single lung transplant may be an option. Can you have a lung transplant more than once? Yes, this is possible, but not that common. Retransplantation accounts for about 4 percent of lung transplant procedures.
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.
Most lung transplant patients live longer. Most patients enjoy a better quality of life. Higher energy levels. Work and travel is easier.
The recovery process
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.
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).
What's the risk of rejection? Between 20 to 30 out of 100 patients experience rejection during the first year after a lung transplant. The risk of rejection is highest in the first 3-6 months after a transplant.
Oxygen is necessary for all functions of your body. Carbon dioxide is a waste product that the body needs to get rid of. Most people can get by with only one lung instead of two, if needed. Usually, one lung can provide enough oxygen and remove enough carbon dioxide, unless the other lung is damaged.
Ex vivo perfusion and ventilation of a donor lung
As the nationwide need for organs continues to grow, the shortage of donor lungs is a major limitation. It is estimated that less than 20 percent of all donor lungs are suitable for transplant.
It is common for transplant recipients to resume a more normal lifestyle, including sexual activity, as they recover. Sexual function may not have been an important part of your life before the transplant, but it may now be higher on your agenda.
Some patients will only wait a few days or weeks for their transplant but most will wait between 6 -18 months. Not everyone who is accepted on to the waiting list will receive a transplant.
Lung transplantation is indicated for patients with chronic, end-stage lung disease who are failing maximal medical therapy, or for whom no effective medical therapy exists. General indications include: Untreatable end-stage pulmonary disease of any etiology.
Using knowledge learned during the Covid pandemic, surgeons at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago successfully performed double lung transplantations in two patients with stage 4 cancer. Both patients are alive and well.
Pneumonia is a frequent infectious complication of solid organ transplantation (SOT). The occurrence of post‐transplant pneumonia adversely impacts both graft and recipient survival, as well as the cost of care for SOT recipients.
General Dietary Recommendations
No uncooked food such as sushi or meat. Meat should be well done. Raw vegetables need to be washed and scrubbed by someone else other than you. Raw fruits and vegetables, especially root vegetables, may contain fungus.
Lung Transplant Disqualifications
Active or recent history of malignancy. Acute medical instability. Significant dysfunction of another major organ system that is not treatable. Non-adherence to medical therapy or follow up.
Most people are able to drink alcohol in moderation after a lung transplant. You will be given information on your diet and daily fluid allowance from your transplant team. It's very important to follow this advice.