Severance Hospital announced on the 5th that its lung transplant team at the organ transplant center has successfully performed its 600th lung transplant.
Severance Hospital became the first in Korea to successfully perform a lung transplant in 1996 and currently holds the record for the most surgeries performed in the country.
The 600th lung transplant recipient is a 61-year-old male patient surnamed A, diagnosed with Idiopathic NSIP (Non-Specific Interstitial Pneumonia). Idiopathic NSIP, whose cause is unknown, is a disease that causes the lungs to become stiff and makes breathing difficult. It is different from infectious pneumonia caused by bacterial infections, which is commonly known as a lung disease. The lung transplant team at Severance Hospital successfully completed the surgery by transplanting lungs from a brain-dead donor to patient A on the 11th of last month. Ten days after the surgery, patient A was moved from the intensive care unit to a general ward and is currently continuing rehabilitation treatment.
The lung transplant team at Severance Hospital operates a multidisciplinary collaborative system composed of various departments, including thoracic surgery, pulmonology, infectious diseases, and rehabilitation medicine. Specialized medical staff participate simultaneously to closely manage patients before and after surgery. They have a systematic medical system that encompasses the entire process from transplant surgery, infection prevention, rehabilitation treatment, to follow-up care.
Lee Jin-goo, head of the lung transplant team and a professor of thoracic surgery, said, "Achieving 600 cases is not just a simple number but a culmination of the earnest wait of patients and their families, and the dedication of medical staff," adding, "We will continue to do our best to ensure that more patients can regain healthy breathing and start new lives."