Animal experimentation by various pioneers, including Vladimir Demikhov and Henry Metras,[5] during the 1940s and 1950s first demonstrated that the procedure was technically feasible.

[6][7][8] Following a single-lung transplantation, the patient, identified later as convicted murderer John Richard Russell,[9] survived for 18 days.

It was only after the invention of the heart-lung machine, coupled with the development of immunosuppressive drugs such as ciclosporin, that organs such as the lungs could be transplanted with a reasonable chance of patient recovery.

[11][12] In 1988, Vera Dwyer, a woman from County Sligo in Ireland, was diagnosed with an irreversible, chronic and fibrotic lung disease.

In November 2018, Ms. Dwyer was recognized as the world's longest surviving single lung transplant recipient in an event at the Mater Hospital in Dublin.

The new system allocates donated lungs according to the immediacy of need rather than how long a patient has been on the transplant list.

The length of time spent on the list is also the deciding factor when multiple patients have the same lung allocation score.

[21] Patients who are accepted as good potential transplant candidates must carry a pager with them at all times in case a donor organ becomes available.

Such patients may be encouraged to limit their travel within a certain geographical region in order to facilitate rapid transport to a transplant center.

Donors who have been properly screened should be able to maintain a normal quality of life despite the reduction in lung volume.

Before operating on the recipient, the transplant surgeon inspects the donor lung(s) for signs of damage or disease.

[24] Intraoperatively, lung transplantation can be performed with the use of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, cardiopulmonary bypass (heart-lung machine) or without any mechanical circulatory support.

Intraoperative mechanical circulatory support can be required due to severe pulmonary hypertension, haemodynamic instability or inability to tolerate one-lung ventilation.

The average hospital stay following a lung transplant is generally one to three weeks, though complications may require a longer period of time.

[23] After this stage, patients are typically required to attend rehabilitation gym for approximately 3 months to regain fitness.

They must therefore make conscious efforts to take deep breaths and cough in order to clear secretions from the lungs.

[27] Their heart rate responds less quickly to exertion due to the cutting of the vagus nerve that would normally help regulate it.

[29] Nonetheless, the articles involved in this systematic review reported enhancements in muscle strength and increased bone mineral density as well as improvements in 6MWT.

Eyesight, physical ability to do simple actions such as check blind spots, wear a seat belt safely without the wound site being affected and hand eye coordination are all assessed.

[citation needed] Hygiene becomes more important in everyday living due to the immunosuppressant drugs which are required every day to prevent transplant rejection.

Other complications include Post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder, a form of lymphoma due to the immune suppressants, and gastrointestinal inflammation and ulceration of the stomach and esophagus.

Usually the regimen includes ciclosporin, azathioprine and corticosteroids, but as episodes of rejection may reoccur throughout a patient's life, the exact choices and dosages of immunosuppressants may have to be modified over time.

Close follow-up care is required in order to balance the benefits of these drugs versus their potential risks.

[33] As lung transplantation has improved since the late 20th century with advancements in perioperative management, surgical technique and postoperative rehabilitation, 5-year survival has increased even up to 60-70%.