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Members shared personal experiences about the maximum age for a lung transplant with pulmonary fibrosis, noting that while 65 is a common... Read more
*** I am not a doctor; this is not medical advice ***
You live in the UK, @A MyCOPDTeam Member, which is quite different than the USA. From what I’m reading, lung transplants in the UK are very rare due to the lack of donors.
Ref: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/lung-transplant/
In general, there are too many variables for any layperson to answer your question.
In general, in the USA, one can qualify for a lung transplant only if the risk of death is imminent, the patient has a greater than 80% survival rate for at least 90 days following the transplant, AND one is wealthy enough to be able to cover the medical costs / deductibles *if* they can find a viable donor and get their insurance company to authorize the procedure. After all of that, the patient generally needs to be 65 or younger.
My doc has been telling me I need to sign up for a lung transplant since about 2000, and I have refused as the average patient is dead within 3-5 years of having the transplant due to the stress of the operation on their body and immune system, the challenge of rejection, their underlying chronic health issues, and the stress of paying their ongoing medical costs for the very expensive anti-rejection medicines. I have chosen to ignore medical advice, did not opt for any kind of lung transplant, and 8+ years later, I am still here.
Being 77 years of age complicates things for you as the average life span in the UK is 80.x years. Your National Health appears to do less than 100 lung transplants per year, and they are going to factor in your expected life span without the transplant when calculating your likely survival rate.
While you may be able to leave your country and pay for a lung transplant if you are wealthy, the toll of the surgical procedure may greatly impair your quality of life, which is not something to be dismissed lightly.
I know you will continue to pursue what you think best for your survivability, and hope that you will seek out quality-of-health life coaching to help you deal with the normal and worrisome end-of-life questions and grieving we all may have as we contemplate our mortality.
Hugs to you.
I made the same decision, @A MyCOPDTeam Member. Too much money, too much pain and recovery time, immediate chance of death, complications from anti-rejection medications, outrageous costs for anti-rejection medications. Nope, a lung transplant was not the path for me. Hugs to you for being a survivor and still being here.
I had mine at 63. Just have to keep up the fight for yourself.
Sadly, @A MyCOPDTeam Member, I’m stubborn as a mule and a very fragile flower when it comes to being able to tolerate most medications. I’ve been fighting this fight since 6 months of age, and after 61 years of lingering, I’m TIRED and absolutely ready to go when the chance presents itself.
Transplants aren’t for everyone, but I’m glad yours is working out. Hugs.
Monday, 14-NOV-22
I personally know of four people and probably more that received new lungs in their 70s.
That is at Toronto General.
People come from all over to get lungs there.
Highly recommended, since I just had a double lung transplant one year ago today.
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