CHICAGO: Surgeons at Northwestern Medicine kept a 33-year-old man alive for 48 hours without lungs using a total artificial lung system, allowing doctors to perform a life-saving double-lung transplant once donor organs became available. Researchers reported the case on January 29, 2026.
The procedure marks one of the first documented instances of a patient surviving entirely without biological lungs through a temporary artificial replacement.
The patient developed catastrophic lung failure after a severe infection destroyed both lungs beyond recovery. Doctors concluded that transplantation was the only option. However, the infection made an immediate transplant too risky.
A surgical team led by Ankit Bharat, MD, chief of thoracic surgery at Northwestern, removed the patient’s lungs to eliminate the infection and connected him to a custom external artificial lung system.
The device maintained oxygen delivery and removed carbon dioxide while preserving circulation through the heart and body.
“He had developed an infection of his lungs that just could not be treated with any antibiotics because it was resistant to everything,” as said by Dr. Ankit Bharat in a press release by Northwestern Medicine. “That infection caused his lungs to liquify and then continued to progress to the rest of his body.”
The system functioned as a temporary total artificial lung. It diverted blood from the heart, oxygenated it outside the body, and returned it to circulation. This allowed the patient’s organs to keep working despite the complete absence of natural lungs.
Doctors noted that this approach differs from traditional extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, or ECMO. ECMO supports lung function, but the artificial lung system fully replaced it, making survival possible in an otherwise fatal situation.
The technology served as a bridge to transplant, giving doctors a critical window to stabilize the patient while waiting for donor lungs. 2
After two days on the artificial lung system, suitable donor lungs became available. Surgeons completed a double-lung transplant and the patient regained respiratory function.
Follow-up reports show that more than two years after surgery, the patient remains in good health with strong lung performance.
Researchers published the case in the Cell Press journal Med on January 29, 2026. The report included molecular analysis of the removed lungs, confirming severe immune-driven destruction and scarring that made recovery impossible.
According to the surgical team, these findings may help doctors recognize earlier when lung damage has reached a point where transplantation is the only effective treatment.
“For severe lung damage caused by respiratory infections, even in acute settings, lung transplant can be lifesaving. Patients and families should know to ask about all available options,” Dr. Bharat said in the Press Release.
The success of the artificial lung system suggests new possibilities for patients with severe lung failure who might otherwise die while waiting for donor organs.
References:
1. Med, Yan, Y., et al., “Bridge to transplant using a flow-adaptive extracorporeal total artificial lung system following bilateral pneumonectomy” (Cell Press journal Med) —https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1113368?
2. Vyas, Ankit, Viral Patel, and Cecily F. Wang. Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation in Adults. In StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing, January 14, 2025. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK576426/
3. Chicago Notes and Bibliography (Bibliography Entry):
Northwestern Medicine. “Northwestern Medicine Surgeons Develop a Total Artificial Lung System to Keep a Patient Alive for 48 Hours after Removing Both Lungs, Enabling a Double-Lung Transplant.” Northwestern Medicine News, January 29, 2026. https://news.nm.org/northwestern-medicine-surgeons-develop-a-total-artificial-lung-system-to-keep-a-patient-alive-for-48-hours-after-removing-both-lungs-enabling-a-double-lung-transplant/