Heart-lung transplant
If a heart-lung transplant is thought to be a potential treatment for you, you'll be asked to have an assessment before potentially being placed on the transplant waiting list.
The purpose of the assessment is to check whether you're a suitable candidate for a heart-lung transplant.
An in-depth assessment will be carried out at your nearest transplant centre to build up a detailed picture of your current state of health. This will also check whether there are any underlying problems that could affect your suitability for having a transplant.
You'll also have the chance to hear details about the transplant. Before visiting the transplant centre, you may find it useful to write a list of questions you would like to ask the transplant team.
As part of your assessment, you may have some of the tests described below:
The whole assessment process usually takes a few days to complete. If your child is being assessed, the transplant centre will normally be able to arrange accommodation for you if you need it.
The final decision about whether you or your childare suitable for a heart-lung transplant is not made by one person. An agreementis reached on a case-by-case basis by anumber of membersof the transplant team during a formal meeting.
After your assessment is complete, the team may:
Once the decision has been made, you will have the opportunity to speak in person with a member of the transplant team.
If it's decided that you or your child are not suitable for a heart-lung transplant, you will have the opportunity to discuss the other treatment options suitable for you.
It's impossible to say how long it will take for a suitable donor to be found. It may be several months, or even years, before a donated heart and lungs of the right size and blood group become available. The waiting times for a heart-lung transplant are often very long and your condition could deteriorate while you wait.
While you're on the waiting list, you'll be seen regularly to monitor your condition. Your transplant centre will be able to offer any support, guidance and information you need while you're waiting for a suitable donor to be found. They're fully aware that for many people this can be both a frustrating and frightening experience.
In some cases, a planned transplant might not go ahead. This may be because your health deteriorates to such an extent that a transplant is no longer considered to be a safe or effective treatment. Unfortunately, dying before a donated heart and lungs becomes available is also a possibility.
You should discuss both possibilities with the staff at your transplant centre and, if necessary, with your friends, family and loved ones.
When a donated set of heart and lungs becomes available, your transplant team will contact you to arrange for transport to take you to the transplant centre as quickly as possible.
You will be taken to the operating theatre and given a general anaesthetic so you're asleep while the procedure is carried out.
A piece of equipment known as a heart-lung bypass machine will be attached to your body using tubes that are inserted into your blood vessels. The machine pumps oxygen-rich blood around your body until the operation is complete.
A cut (incision) will be made in your chest to enable the surgeon to remove your heart and lungs. The donated set of heart and lungs will be put in place and reconnected to the surrounding blood vessels.
The incision in your chest will then be stitched up and you will be transferred to an intensive care unit (ICU) , where your recovery will be closely monitored.
Because ofthe complexity of the procedure, a heart-lung transplant procedure usually takes several hours to complete.
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A heart-lung transplant is a major and rarely performed surgical procedure where a person's diseased heart and lungs are replaced with those of a recently deceased donor. A heart-lung transplant is the only treatment available for people who have combined heart and lung failure when all other treatment options have failed.
If a heart-lung transplant is thought to be a potential treatment for you, you'll be asked to have an assessment before potentially being placed on the transplant waiting list.
Following a heart-lung transplant, you'll probably need to stay in a hospital intensive care unit (ICU) for a few days. This is because: you'll need to be carefully monitored to make sure the organs are working, there's a risk your body may suddenly reject the new organs, etc.
One of the biggest risks after having a heart-lung transplant is that, despite taking immunosuppressants, your body will reject the new heart and lungs.