Hanoi (VNA) – Viet Duc University Hospital announced on August 13 that it had successfully performed Vietnam’s first-ever simultaneous heart-and-lung transplant on a patient battling multi-organ failure. The results prove the Southeast Asian nation is levelling up on sophisticated surgeries amid broader healthcare advancements.
Hospital Director Dr. Duong Duc Hung described the operation as a pivotal achievement, stressing how it has elevated the hospital’s expertise in multi-organ transplants and put Vietnam on the global map of countries with cutting-edge surgical interventions. “This success opens up new opportunities to save critically ill patients,” he declared.
Expanding survival chances
Dr. Pham Huu Lu, deputy head of cardiovascular and thoracic surgery at the hospital, said the patient, 38, suffers from an atrial septal defect and severe pulmonary hypertension. She previously underwent treatment to rectify the defect back in 2011 at the Hanoi Heart Hospital, yet subsequent irregular follow-ups deteriorated her condition over time.
Upon admission, doctors diagnosed her with Eisenmenger Syndrome, accompanied by irreversible right ventricular failure and severe tricuspid regurgitation. This condition is life-threatening, leaving combined heart-lung transplantation as the only option. The patient was also malnourished, the donor lungs were larger than the patient’s chest cavity, and she was suffering from an infection of Acinetobacter baumannii.
The seven-hour operation involved nearly 40 specialists across multiple fields, including cardiothoracic medicine, anesthesia and resuscitation, surgery, rehabilitation and nutrition. Surgeons used extracorporeal circulation to temporarily replace heart and lung function during the procedure.
Global significance
According to Dr. Hung, heart-lung transplantation is among the most sophisticated interventions in medicine, typically reserved for patients in final stages of both cardiac and pulmonary failure when no other treatments are effective. The procedure requires highly complex techniques, seamless coordination among numerous specialties and intensive postoperative care.
On a global scale, such transplants remain exceedingly rare, with only about 100 performed annually, primarily due to the acute shortage of suitable donor organs, the complexities of the surgery, and high risk of complications. Nevertheless, advancements in medical science have bolstered outcomes, with international statistics indicating that roughly 60% of recipients survive for at least five years post-surgery.
“This represents one of the most challenging procedures performed anywhere in the world,” said Ha Anh Duc, Head of the Department of Medical Services Administration at the Ministry of Health. “It is a major achievement not only for Viet Duc hospital but for Vietnamese healthcare as a whole, placing us on par with developed nations despite significant differences in available resources.”
Rising organ donations
In 2025, Viet Duc University Hospital logged its peak volume of multi-organ retrievals and transplants sourced from donors since launching such a drive in 2010. The hospital has long been a pioneer in the field, with an average of 8–10 donors each year until recently.
From late 2023 through 2025, donations rose sharply. Between August 2024 and August 2025, more than 50 families of patients with severe traumatic brain injuries agreed to organ donation, enabling 34 multi-organ retrievals.
As of August 12, 2025, the hospital performed 2,478 transplants in total, including 109 heart, 8 lung, 169 liver and 2,192 kidney procedures./.
