Appearing healthy and radiant at Viet Duc University Hospital on September 10, Quynh expressed her gratitude, “I never imagined I could breathe like a normal person again. Before, even lying down to breathe felt exhausting, but now I can walk and move freely. I'm deeply thankful to the doctors and especially to the donor who gave me a second chance at life.”
Her only son also tearfully thanked the medical team for saving his mother.
Tran Nhu Quynh and her son at Viet Duc University Hospital on September 10
Dr Duong Duc Hung, Director of Viet Duc Hospital, hailed the success of the operation, “The simultaneous heart-lung transplant for a patient with multi-organ failure marks a historic milestone, stressing Viet Duc’s advances in multi-organ transplantation and Vietnam’s standing on the global medical map. It opens new opportunities to save critically ill patients.”
Quynh poses for a photo with doctors after after undergoing Vietnam’s first heart-lung transplant.
Heart-lung transplantation is one of the world’s most complex surgical procedures, requiring coordinated expertise across multiple specialities, advanced intensive care and an extremely rare donor match. Globally, only about 100 such transplants are performed each year.
Vietnamese doctors took the high-risk decision when a suitable donor became available, determined to give the patient her only chance of survival.
To date, Viet Duc Hospital has successfully carried out 104 heart transplants, including pioneering combined procedures such as heart-kidney, heart-liver and now heart-lung transplants. The hospital has also performed the country’s youngest-ever pediatric heart transplant.
Dr Duong Duc Hung, Director of Viet Duc Hospital gives a present from the Minister of Health to Quynh.
Dr Hung noted a sharp rise in organ donations: while Vietnam recorded only 100 donations nationwide over 13 years (2010–2023), Viet Duc alone has seen 50 donations in just the past two years. This surge has offered hope to many end-stage heart failure patients awaiting life-saving transplants.
