DCD for lung transplantation

Lung transplantation has been performed as a well-accepted therapy for patients with various end-stage lung diseases [1]. Nonetheless, the wide spread of lung transplantation is limited by the donor shortage resulting in increasing number of deaths on waiting lists [2, 3]. Historically, the first attempts of most of solid organ transplants were from donation after cardiac death donor (DCD)/non-heart-beating donor (NHBD) [4, 5]. Since the introduction of brain death criteria, organs have been retrieved from brain-dead (heart-beating) donors. However, as a result of increasing donor shortage, there is now a renewed interest in DCD (NHBD) lung transplantation [6, 7]. DCD (NHBD) is expected to become the major source of organ supply in countries especially where the concept of brain death is not widely accepted by the public. This chapter aims to describe the relevant published experimental evidences and recent clinical experiences with lung transplantation from DCD (NHBD).