Lung transplantation in Japan.
The first successful living-donor lobar lung transplant (LDLLT) in Japan was performed at Okayama University in October 1998 after a long period of waiting for the legalization of thoracic organ transplantation. By May 2003, a further 41 lung transplants had been performed; 28 from living donors and 13 from cadaveric donors. The indications for a lung transplant are very specialized in Japan, the most common being primary pulmonary hypertension. Although the number of lung transplants is still small, survival in Japan, at 72% after 4 years, is better than the world average. Because the number of available cadaveric donors for lung transplantation is limited, at less than 5 per year, LDLLT is a realistic option for properly selected candidates.
Date
Hiroshi
H
Department of Cancer and Thoracic Surgery, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine and Dentistry, 2-5-1 Shikata-cho, Okayama 700-8558, Japan.
D049673:History, 20th Century; D049674:History, 21st Century; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D019520:Living Donors / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D016040:Lung Transplantation / Q000266:history / Q000401:mortality / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome