The Methodist J.C. Walter Jr. Transplant Center is home to the nation’s largest heart-lung transplant program. Because of the complexity of the surgery, only about 100 are performed each year in the United States; in 2011 alone, our surgeons performed nine.
A heart-lung transplant can offer improved outcomes over a single-organ transplant in the case of conditions that can affect both the heart and lungs:
- Congenital heart defects that can lead to both heart and lung failure
- Metabolic disorders or genetic defects that affect the heart and lungs
- Diseases of the lung that can cause secondary heart failure, such as primary pulmonary hypertension
- Co-existing end-stage heart and end-stage lung disease, such as heart failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
Heart-lung transplants are less complex than other types of combined organ transplants, because both parts of the surgery take place in the chest cavity and do not require a separate surgical team. The organs come from the same donor and are transplanted as one unit and at the same time. To learn about our current transplant clinical trials, click here.
Patient stories
Mandi Lusby wasn’t content with just recovering from her heart/double-lung transplant—she went on to win six medals at the Transplant Games.
