Lung Allocation Score - How The LAS Score Is Used

How The LAS Score Is Used

The lung allocation score is an important part of the recipient selection process, but other factors are also considered. Patients who are under the age of 12 are still given priority based on how long they have been on the transplant waitlist. The length of time spent on the list is also the deciding factor when multiple patients have the same lung allocation score.

• Blood type compatibility

  The blood type of the donor must match that of the recipient due to certain antigens that are present on donated lungs. A mismatch in blood type can lead to a strong response by the immune system and subsequent rejection of the transplanted organs. In an ideal case, as many of the human leukocyte antigens as possible would also match between the donor and the recipient, but the desire to find a highly compatible donor organ must be balanced against the patient's immediacy of need.

• Age of donor

  The donated lung or lungs must be large enough to adequately oxygenate the patient, but small enough to fit within the recipient's chest cavity. Therefore age is a consideration in the transplant process.

• Distance from the donor hospital

  As donated lungs should be transplanted into the recipient within four to six hours of harvesting, ideally both donor and transplant hospitals should be relatively near each other.