Controlled donation after circulatory death (DCD) donors: A focus on the utilization of pediatric donors and outcomes after lung transplantation

Background: Access to timely suitably size-matched quality organs remains a challenge for pediatric (pLTx) and adult (aLTx) lung transplantation. The outcomes of donation after circulatory death (DCD) donor lungs from pediatric or adult donors are rarely reported.

Methods: This report describes the controlled DCD and pLTx activity (≤ age 18 years) and outcomes since 2006 when DCD LTx started at our center at the Alfred Hospital.

Results: Forty pLTx have been performed since 2006, 9 utilizing DCD and 31 donation after brain death (DBD) donors. A total of 22 pLTX have been conducted since 2012 (when DCD pLTx started); 9 DCD LTx (median age 15 years), including 4 pediatric DCD donors (mean age 8 years) and 5 adult (including 2 cutdown bilobar) DCD LTx donors (mean age 43 years). The other 13 pLTx utilized DBD donors - 8 pediatric (mean age 9 years) and 5 adult (including 2 cutdown bilobar) DBD LTx donors (mean age 44 years). One hundred percent survived 1 year, and 7 of 9 DCD pLTx (78%) are alive (median of 1,316 days), with one Chronic Lung Allograft Dysfunction (CLAD) death at 531 days and one renal failure death at 1,813 days. Three waiting list pediatric deaths occurred at 166 and 320 days. Since 2006, 77 pediatric donors have been used for LTx. Fifteen of these were DCD donors (median age 16 years), 11 of 15 have been used for aLTx (73%). Ten of 11 aLTx are alive at a median 1,992 days (91%) with 1 death at Day 2,444 from CLAD.

Conclusions: Controlled DCD provide a significant and quality donor lung pool to increase LTx opportunities for pediatric patients (and adults) with terminal lung disease.