Lung transported from Pune to Hyderabad in one hour

When Bollywood actor Manoj Vajpayee took the responsibility to transport a heart from Mumbai to Pune within 150-minutes in his movie 'Traffic' in 2016, people said this could happen only in the movie, not in real life. However, inspired by the movie, policemen and intrepid people have made attempts to save lives by creating traffic-free corridors whenever patients, or even organs, had to be transferred to save lives.

Following the same, a patient at a hospital in Hyderabad received a lung from a brain dead donor in Pune, as different authorities came together to ensure the organ's transportation within one hour.

A green corridor was arranged by different departments in both cities for faster transport of the organ. A patient suffering from terminal lung disease and undergoing treatment at KIMS Heart and Lung Transplant Institute Hyderabad was the recipient of the organ. He had registered his name under the Jeevandan scheme of the Telangana government.

The family of a young person, who was declared brain dead at a private hospital in Pune on Sunday, came forward to donate the organ while the Zonal Transplant Coordination Center (ZTCC) Pune ensured that the organ reached Hyderabad in time for the transplant.

Dr Swarnalatha, who is in-charge of Jeevandan, Telangana guided and supported the cause, while Arthi Gokhle, Central Coordinator ZTCC Pune ensured that it happened without any obstacles.

The lung was brought by a chartered flight from Pune to Hyderabad. Traffic police of both the cities arranged the green corridor and the Airports Authority of India (AAI) also came forward to help this noble cause.

KIMS Heart and Lung Transplant Institute, Hyderabad, received the lung by the evening from a city 560 km away, within one hour, and transplanted the same to the needy patient.

At a time when even smaller health issues have become big challenges during Covid-19 pandemic times, the authorities have shown that even complicated procedures like lung transplantation can be done if there is a strong will. Doctors at KIMS said the transplant was done after the donor tested negative for coronavirus.

<em>(With Agency Inputs)</em>.