ABSTRACT
Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (SRTR), University Renal Research and Education Association (URREA), University of Michigan,
Ann Arbor, Michigan, U.S.A.
INTRODUCTION
This chapter discusses the evolution of the new United States lung allocation system and reviews the data analyses that led to its development. Progress in lung transplantation lagged behind that of other solid organs, in part because of difficulties with bronchial anastomotic healing in the precyclosporine era and the problems with early graft failure attributed to acute rejection and the susceptibility of the newly implanted graft to infection. The introduction of cyclosporine A allowed for clinical success with heart-lung and isolated lung transplantation in the early 1980s (1,2).
