Lung Transplants
More than 1,800 people await life-saving lung transplants in the U.S.
About the Lungs
When we breathe, we do not often think of the complex process that is necessary to keep oxygen in our body. The lungs are crucial to this, as it passes oxygen into the bloodstream and removes carbon dioxide that is then expelled from the body.
While a person can live a normal life with only 30 percent of lung function, there are thousands of people whose lungs have been damaged more significantly, and therefore, need a transplant. Although some of the conditions that result in requiring a lung transplant are hereditary, most are caused or worsened by smoking or environmental pollution.
Transplants
Patients on the lung transplant waiting list are often severely disabled and might even require oxygen 24-hours-a-day. This is why it is crucial for these individuals to receive a transplant in a timely fashion. Living lung donation is a possibility in some instances, as two living donors can each offer a lobe their lungs, which are then both transplanted into the patient.
- There are more than 1,800 people waiting for a life-saving lung transplant in the U.S.
- Locally, there are 80 patients waiting a lung transplant.
- The average patient must wait nearly four months to receive a lung transplant.
- In 2008, there were 1,221 lung transplants performed nationally.
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Lung Transplant
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