Many acquired, infective, environmental, and congenital lung conditions progress irrevocably to destroy human lungs. Many of these individuals are beyond the scope of conventional treatment of these lung conditions and increasingly incapacitated, debilitated, and oxygen-dependent. There comes a time in the life span of these individuals, wherein, lung transplant is the final and only lifesaving option. Most often the aggressive nature of the illness and its effects on the body limit the lifespan of these patients. 

Patients who are considering lung transplant as a treatment option require a full evaluation of not just their disease but its impact on their bodies and other organ systems as well. That evaluation includes myriad medical tests and an assessment of their social, lifestyle, psychological states, family support, and other medical comorbidities. Once we determine that none of those factors would be inhibitive to having a good outcome or predictive of not having a bad outcome after their lung transplant, would we would consider their candidacy for this life-altering treatment. 

Our lung transplant program wait times are something that we're quite proud of. The majority of people receive a transplant within two months of being listed for their transplant. This happens as the team is focused and rallies around every patient and caregiver, to bring them up to speed with lifestyle changes, education, physical rehabilitation, nutritional supplementation & psychological support that would be needed to get them, in the best shape before they are transplanted. This is the only transplant service nationally that utilizes all these resources consistently and effectively, to deliver expected positive outcomes, closely monitored long term care, and great survival. I like to think of transplantation as personalized medicine, where the patient is at the center of a team of a highly experienced, motivated, committed, and compassionate set of medical professionals.

I think people should come to the KIMS Heart and Lung Transplant Institute because our outcomes are superior to every other place, our processes are mature, and our motivation to help you and empower you, to help yourself is exemplary. Our hospitalization stays after the transplant are shorter than elsewhere. Most people will be discharged within 18 days following the lung transplant. Our one-year survivals are over 85% and the three-year survival after the transplant is above 75%. 

These statistics are better than any other transplant institute in India. Our program has been around for four years, and during this time we have developed stringent hospital processes and an expert team that is well accustomed to taking care of patients requiring hearts and lung transplants. Our team also focuses on helping patients in the recovery from these transplants with great outcomes. 

We like to think of ourselves more like a family and we welcome all of our transplant recipients and candidates into this large and ever-growing family. We establish a strong bond and deep relationship with you – we take steps to understand your life, and your health to offer you the best support. I think that this connection is what provides the trust to undergoing a successful lung transplant at the KIMS Heart and Lung Transplant Institute. 

The purpose of this information guide is to provide you with all details related to a lung transplant. Our medical team will work closely with you, and your family. You are the most important member of this team. It is important that you share all this information with your caregiver, family, friends, and others supporting you on this journey. You must have a dedicated support person, also called a caregiver, to accompany you throughout the entire process of having a lung transplant. We will help you to understand the process of having a transplant and the long-term changes that you need to make to your lifestyle.

Lung Transplant Process

Your lung transplant journey starts with a referral from your primary physician or referring pulmonologist. Our administrative team will connect you with our lung transplant pulmonologist. During this appointment, you will learn about your current health status and outlook in much greater and elaborate detail. After this appointment and your consent, the lung transplant pulmonologist will ask the transplant evaluation team to plan a transplant assessment. 

Having a lung transplant is a big decision. You need to understand the benefits, risks, and program requirements. The evaluation helps to determine if transplantation is the right treatment for you and ensures that it is as safe as possible for you to have a transplant. The assessment process will involve coming to the hospital to have a number of tests, and meeting with key members of your team. The assessment process will give you, your family, and our team the information to make an informed decision about having a lung transplant. Once your assessment is complete, the transplant team will meet to review your results. This assessment process can take up to one week (seven days). Your transplant coordinator will call you to meet our specialists that include pulmonologists, surgeons, intensivists, nutritionists, psychologists, infectious disease specialists, transplant coordinators, physiotherapists, and financial counselors to discuss the results of your assessment after the pre-transplant selection meeting.

If a transplant is recommended, the choice to proceed is up to you. We will support you whether you go forward with a transplant or not. If you decide to go ahead with the transplant, you will meet with one of our transplant surgeons and your transplant coordinator to discuss your surgery and to sign surgical consent forms. Post financial clearance and psychological clearance, we will officially place you on the lung transplant waiting list by registering with Jeevandan/ZCCK/ TRANSTAN /NOTTO depending on your location of transplant. The time that you wait for your lung transplant is unpredictable because you have to be matched with a suitable donor.