62-year-old returns home with new lungs after SSKM surgery
Times of India | 6 June 2024
Kolkata: A lung transplant at Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education & Research (IPGMER) ensured a fresh lease of life for a 62-year-old Gopal Das on Tuesday. Das, a fish vendor from Howrah, had been battling lung failure for more than a year and was struggling to breathe even a month ago. This transplant helped him overcome his long battle. Das underwent eastern India’s first lung transplant in a govt hospital.He was discharged IPGMER after a successful transplant.
Das had been undergoing treatment at the state-run hospital and when even taking a few steps became physically exhausting for him, doctors advised him to get lung transplant. On April 30, when the family of a 42-year-old homemaker donated all her organs after she was declared brain dead at SSKM’s Trauma Care Centre, Das became the recipient of her lungs.
Unlike the transplant of other organs, experts said that a lung transplant was more complex and challenging. During the counselling session when doctors explained the risks involved in the procedure, the patient himself said he was ready to put up a fight.
Since this was a maiden lung transplant in the govt sector hospital an elaborate medical board was formed. The transplant was conducted by the Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery (CTVS) team. The board spanned across departments of CTVS, chest, infectious disease, nephrology and had senior doctors Prakash Sanki, Subhendu Mahapatra, Sandeep Kumar Kar, S Kundu, S Chatterjee, Yogiraj Ray, A Pal and A Banerjee.
“Even though this was our maiden lung transplant, we did not seek any external help. We will continue to offer the patient all sorts of medical support even after he gets discharged,” said Manimoy Banerjee, director IPGMER.
“We are indebted to the doctors of SSKM as they gave a new life to my father. The govt has also extended help to provide all the costly medications,” said son Arpan Das.