December 2024- A man from Northampton has become the first person in the UK to receive a double-lung transplant using a new machine that could improve the number of lungs available for donation and benefit more patients currently waiting for a lifesaving lung transplant.
Daniel Evans-Smith (49) received his transplant at Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in Cambridge where a surgical team used a technique called ex-vivo lung perfusion (EVLP).
This takes donated lungs which are initially considered marginally acceptable or marginally unacceptable for transplant, reconditions them outside the body in a special machine – the XPSTM system from XVIVO – and can make them suitable for donation.
Speaking months after his operation, Daniel said: “I feel very privileged to have been offered the opportunity to be in this situation.
“Last year it was discussed that I may soon need palliative care. Without having a lung transplant soon, the likelihood was that I wouldn’t survive much longer.
“I was woken early in the morning to news that a potentially suitable set of lungs had been found and they were going to be put on the machine to assess them.
“It was very sudden but the lungs performed well and the transplant went ahead.
“I can’t thank my donor and their family enough. Even in this short period of time after transplantation, my life has improved from where I was this time last year.”
EVLP is a technique used widely in Europe and the United States but has not yet become common practice in the UK. Although there have been a handful of EVLP transplants in the UK before, these have largely been limited to clinical trials or have used different machines.
This new machine, and the establishment of a dedicated EVLP programme at Royal Papworth Hospital, is a significant breakthrough in improving lung transplantation in the UK.
Mr Berman, Surgical Lead for Transplantation at Royal Papworth Hospital, said: “While this marks another important milestone for our lung transplant patients, it also marks a new beginning for Daniel who continues to receive expert care from our multidisciplinary teams.”
Dr Jas Parmar, Transplant Consultant at Royal Papworth Hospital and also Chair of the Cardiothoracic Advisory Group (Lungs), said: “We are delighted to be able to offer this opportunity to these very ill patients in need of lung transplantation. We have only been able to do this with the support that we have enjoyed from our trust, NHS England, NHS Blood and Transplant and of course all donor families without whom this work would be impossible. We are always indebted to their selfless act of organ donation.”
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Professor Derek Manas, NHS Blood and Transplant Medical Director for Organ and Tissue Donation and Transplantation, said: “We are grateful for the work to improve transplantation technology and techniques but most of all grateful to the patients and families who agree to save and improve lives through organ donation.”
Christoffer Rosenblad, CEO at XVIVO, added: “The implementation of similar EVLP programmes has enabled increased utilisation of donor lungs at transplant clinics around the world. The outcomes with marginal lungs transplanted after EVLP are also similar to those obtained with so called ‘standard lungs’.”
