Patient Resources

Review Our Lung Transplant Resources & Requirements

UCLA COVID-19 Transplant Patient Guide (PDF)
Important information about the COVID-19 pandemic, vaccines, and supplemental doses. 

Información importante sobre la pandemia de COVID-19, vacunas y dosis suplementarias. (In Spanish)

Our team sees each patient as part of the UCLA family. We care for each lung transplant patients throughout your lifetime, a relationship that includes your family members and caregivers.

We carefully consider each patient as an individual. We work closely with you before, during and after lung transplant or heart/lung transplant. Read more about our approach to care.

UCLA and the United Network for Organ Sharing

To learn more about lung transplant lists and the lung transplant match process, the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) provides a toll-free patient services line to:

• Help transplant candidates, recipients and family members understand organ allocation practices and transplantation data
• Discuss problems you may experience with your transplant center or the transplantation system in general

The toll-free number for UNOS is 888-894-6361.

What to Expect: Lung Transplant Evaluation & Requirements

A life-saving lung transplant or heart/lung transplant is a major undertaking with very serious implications. Before patients are listed for a lung transplant, they undergo an evaluation to ensure they meet the lung transplant requirements. Steps include:

• Assessing psychological and social issues involved in organ transplantation, such as stress, financial issues and family or other support.
• Blood and diagnostic tests to assess overall health status and improve the chances of a good match.
• Immunizations and other preparations to reduce the chance of infection.
• Consideration of medical history and other information that could help determine your eligibility for a lung transplant.

While most of our patients come from Southern California, where we are the referral center for Kaiser Permanente, many also come to UCLA from Northern California and other states in UNOS Region 5, including Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Hawaii and Oregon. A small number of international patients travel to UCLA for evaluation.

What to Do While Waiting for Your Lung Transplant

Once patients have been accepted as a transplant candidate, they are placed on the United Network for Organ Sharing list to await an available donor organ. Please remember that:

• During this waiting time, physicians will instruct you in how to maximize your well-being.
• Donor organs are assigned to lung recipients based on several characteristics, including blood type and the severity of the patient's condition.
• It is important to remain available at the contact information you have provided so that you can be notified immediately when a lung is available.
• Your physicians will advise you on how to prepare for the transplant.

What to Expect Post-Transplant

After a lung transplant, most patients remain in the hospital for 10 to 14 days before discharge. After you are discharged from the hospital, you will need to stay in the Los Angeles area (if you live far away) for a while - usually about three months - for follow-up appointments and monitoring.

Your UCLA nursing and support team will help you identify local housing during this time. Learn more about lodging and nearby services, including the UCLA Tiverton House.

Our team provides lifelong follow-up after transplant at intervals specified by your physician, unless specific arrangements are made to transfer your care to a UNOS-certified lung transplant program where you live.

Ongoing Connection to UCLA's Transplant Program

Patients often continue to receive follow-up care and monitoring from our physicians for years to come. Long after your procedure is completed, you will remain a member of the UCLA transplant family.

In fact, we were fortunate in 2015 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of UCLA's first lung transplant with Julie Hancock, the recipient of that transplant - then a mother of two, now a grandmother of five and still going strong.