Objective: To perform a double sleeve right upper and middle bilobectomy with transposing the inferior pulmonary vein to the superior one stump in a lung cancer patient.
Method: The "cut-down" lobe was immersed in heparin solution in vitro for 15 minutes. It took 15, 14 and 10 minutes to finish the anastomosis of pulmonary vein, bronchus, and artery. The pulmonary artery was blocked for 3 hours. Postoperatively, the patient underwent ventilation for 6 hours.
Result: In the 5th day after operation, re-implanted lung inflated well, the chest tube was retreated, and the patient can walk around. The reconstruction of pulmonary vessels and airway was done by spiral CT, which demonstrated no stenoses of bronchi and the pulmonary blood perfused and returned very well 3 weeks after operation. Follow-up more than 6 months showed the patient had a good quality of life and resumed his work.
Conclusion: It is indicated to apply the technique of lung autotransplantation for operation on the central bronchogenic carcinoma when the main bronchus or pulmonary artery involved by tumor is too long to perform the anastomosis in the double sleeve bilobectomy.