Heart transplant

A heart transplant is when a diseased heart is replaced by a healthy human heart from a donor. 

Because there are not enough suitable and available donor hearts, not everyone who could benefit from a transplant can have one.

In 2009 there were 121 heart transplants and 5 heart and lung transplants at seven hospitals around the UK.

Who might need a heart transplant?

A heart transplant may be considered if you have severe heart failure, or more rarely congenital heart disease.  Not everyone who has these conditions is suitable for a transplant.

If your condition is serious and other treatments have not managed to improve things or control your symptoms, your cardiologist may send you to a heart transplant centre for a transplant assessment.

Waiting for a heart transplant

If you are considered suitable for a heart transplant you will be added to the transplant waiting list. Once you are on the list, a suitable heart may come along in a few days, or it may take many months or even years. 

Unfortunately suitable hearts do not become available for everyone and only about 7 in 10 people on the waiting list receive a transplant.  In the UK, the average waiting time for an adult is about six months, and the average waiting time for a child is three months.

Having a heart transplant operation

• The operation usually takes between four and six hours. You will be given a general anaesthetic.
• The surgeon will make a cut in your breastbone to get access to your heart.You will be connected to a heart-lung bypass machine which makes the blood circulate around your body.
• Your surgeon will then work on transplanting your new heart.
• When this is finished, they will start your heart beating again.  When the heart begins to take over pumping and your condition is stable, the heart-lung machine will be turned off. 
• The surgeon will then close your breastbone with wire, which will stay there for the rest of your life.
• After the operation you will be moved to the intensive care unit. Most people wake the following day. You will be sedated and breathe with the help of a ventilator machine until you are able to breathe for yourself.

It’s natural for you to feel excited, emotional or anxious about your surgery and life afterwards.  Remember that a transplanted heart is no more than a new pump - it does not change your personality or behaviour.

If you have any questions or if anything is worrying you, you can talk to your transplant team, the Transplant Support Network or call our Heart Helpline on 0300 330 3311.

What happens after the transplant?

• Most people leave hospital about four weeks after the operation, but some need to stay in hospital for longer.
• In the first few months after your surgery you will need to spend a lot of time visiting the hospital – you might even need to stay near the transplant centre. Your transplant team will talk to you about practical arrangements for after your surgery.
• Although you will be weak after the operation, recovery can be very quick. It is important to build up your level of activity gradually. You should avoid activities involving lifting and pushing until your breastbone is fully healed, three or four months after surgery.
• Once you feel fit and able, you may be able to start doing things like light vacuuming or light gardening.

Life after a heart transplant

Once you’ve recovered from surgery you should be able to return to a wide range of activities including driving, holidays and physical activity - some people are even able to go back to work. 

You will need to take a number of medicines, including immunosuppressants, for the rest of your life.  Without them your body would rapidly recognise your new heart as ‘foreign’ and try to reject it.  This type of medicine can have side-effects which your doctor will discuss with you.

Many people who have had a successful heart transplant go on to live long and healthy lives.  About 8 in every 10 transplant patients in the UK live for at least three years after their operation, with around 7 in 10 living for over five years and 5 in 10 living for over ten years. 

Where can I find out more?

• Our Heart transplantation booklet talks in detail about heart transplantation and is for people who have had, or are waiting for a heart transplant, and their family and friends.
• The Transplant Support Network (TSN) are a nationwide network of volunteer transplant patients and their carers, who provide support and information for others coping with transplants
• The NHS Blood and Transplant special health authority within the NHS provides support to transplantation services across the UK and makes sure that donated organs are matched and used in a fair way.  They also provide information and statistics on heart and other transplants.

Do you want to help?

Join the NHS Organ Donation Register, a register for anyone who wants to donate their heart or other organs.