Full Lung Transplant

[PammyT558]

Dear Team,
I'm due back at the Hospital this Friday and my consultant wants me to give him an answer about having a Full Lung Transplant. My question's are
1, is there any other treatment apart from a transplant for Pulmonary Fibrosis / Emphysema?
2, Do you know the statistics for success?
3, is there any clinical tests /research in Lancaster where I live? if so who do I contact.
Thank you for any help or advice you can give me.

[Dr Helen Webberley]

Dear Pammy, it sounds like you have quite severe lung disease for your consultant to be considering a lung transplant. Sometimes the lungs get so bad that transplant would be the only option. I expect that you are already taking all the appropriate inhalers etc?

Success rates vary a lot, and your consultant should be able to discuss this in detail with you.

You can find out about clinical trials here:

http://www.ukctg.nihr.ac.uk/default.aspx

I wish you well, whatever you decide to do. Make sure you are able to ask your consultant all the questions you want to.

Best wishes, Dr Webberley

[Professor Jeremy Brown]

Dear Pammy, Transpantation can cure a severe lung condition; for some one with bad empyhsema of fibrosis it is the only treatment that will restore their breathing to anything close to normal. However, it is a risky procedure - between 1 in 20 and 1 in 10 people having a transplant will die due to the operation, and thereafter they need to take a lot of medication to prevent the new lung(s) being rejected by the body and to prevent infections. But it is a life changing procedure for some one with severe lung disease.

[Professor Jeremy Brown]

Dear Pammy, Transplantation can cure a severe lung condition; for some one with bad empyhsema of fibrosis it is the only treatment that will restore their breathing to anything close to normal. However, it is a risky procedure - between 1 in 20 and 1 in 10 people having a transplant will die due to the operation, and thereafter they need to take a lot of medication to prevent the new lung(s) being rejected by the body and to prevent infections. But it is a life changing procedure for some one with severe lung disease.

[Dr Joanna Porter]

Dear Pammy, I am sorry that you are so unwell from your lung condition. The usual figures that are quoted are that around 80% of patients will survive one year and 50% will survive 5 years post transplant. As Professor Brown says you will need to take medication long term and in reality having a transplant is not like replacing worn out batteries, more of a changing one chronic disease for another. In general, the patients that do well are able to do many of the things that they were not able to do before. Even if you are not at all sure that this is something that you would want to pursue at the moment there is no harm in talking to the transplant team to get a little more information from them. I always say to patients that you can never be referred too soon. The transplant team would rather see you long before you need the operation so that appropriate tests can be done and you can really make an informed decision about whether to go ahead or not. Good Luck.