The impact of time from ILD diagnosis to referral to the transplant center on the probability of inclusion in the transplant waiting list

Abstract

BackgroundLung transplant is a therapeutic option for patients with progressive interstitial lung disease (ILD). ObjectivesThe objective of this study was to determine whether time from ILD diagnosis to referral to a transplant center influences the probability of being included in the transplant waiting list. MethodsWe performed a retrospective cohort study including all ILD patients evaluated as lung transplantation (LT) candidates at a lung transplant center between 01/01/2017 and 31/12/2022. The primary endpoint was the probability of being included in the lung transplant waiting list according to the time elapsed from diagnosis to referral to the transplant center. ResultsA total of 843 lung transplant requests were received, of which 367 (43.5%) were associated with ILD. Thirteen patients were excluded because they did not attend the first visit, whereas another 11 were excluded because some information was missing. As a result, our final sample was composed of 343 patients. The median time from diagnosis to referral was 29.4 (10.9 – 61.1) months. The overall probability of inclusion in the waiting list was 29.7%. By time from diagnosis to referral, the probability of inclusion in the waiting list was 48.1% for the patients referred 〈 6 months from diagnosis; 27.5% for patients referred 6 to 24 months from diagnosis; and 25.8% for patients referred 〉 24 months from diagnosis (p = 0.007). ConclusionsEarly referral to a lung transplant center seemed to increase the probability of being included in the lung transplant waiting list. Further research is needed in this topic.