Türkiye’s leading organ transplant center launches lung transplants

ANTALYA

Akdeniz University, recognized as the institution performing the widest variety of organ transplants in the world, is preparing to add lung transplants to its medical achievements.

Rector Özlenen Özkan emphasized that when it comes to organ transplantation in Türkiye, Akdeniz University has long stood as the foremost institution, backed by five decades of experience.

“Organ transplantation is a highly complex undertaking,” Özkan explained. “It is not enough for a hospital to perform one successful surgery and claim expertise. What matters is the knowledge gained from years of handling diverse cases and severe complications. This field requires not just surgical skill, but also long-term patient care, follow-up and complication management. It is a life-long partnership with the patient.”

Until now, lung transplantation has been the only procedure not performed at the university. Özkan said they had been planning the step for years, but refrained until they had secured the necessary technical infrastructure, intensive care facilities and multidisciplinary teams.

“We have now completed our preparations. The licensing process is nearly finalized, and we will soon become the third authorized center in Türkiye to perform lung transplants,” she stated.

The development carries significant meaning not only for Akdeniz University but also for the southwestern city of Antalya and the surrounding region.

Previously, patients in need of lung transplants had to travel to other cities, facing long rehabilitation periods away from their homes and families.

“This was both financially and emotionally exhausting,” Özkan noted.

Highlighting the challenges unique to lung transplants, she added, “Unlike the heart, kidney or liver, the lungs are in constant contact with the external environment, making them highly vulnerable to infection. Post-operative infection management, intensive care and rehabilitation are therefore critical.”

“This is why lung transplants cannot and should not be performed everywhere. For us, success is not about numbers but about ensuring long, healthy lives for our patients.”

Akdeniz University has long been a pioneer in organ transplantation. Alongside cornea, kidney, heart, pancreas and liver transplants, it has excelled in living donor surgeries with remarkable success rates.

Its record includes groundbreaking procedures such as Türkiye’s first double arm transplant in 2010, the world’s first successful uterus transplant from a deceased donor in 2011, and Türkiye’s first face transplant in 2012, which transformed the life of a young burn victim.