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For centuries, scientists searched for a way to replace a compromised human organ with a healthy one. Finally, in the 1950s, organ transplantation became a reality. It remains one of the most remarkable medical breakthroughs of modern times. Even so, survival rates vary widely. Today, around 90 percent of patients live for five years or more after receiving transplanted hearts, livers or kidneys. For those who receive lung transplants, however, that figure is far lower — around 50 percent.
Now, with funding from multiple donors, a team of UCLA specialists is brightening the picture. Their primary goal is to increase survival rates for lung transplant recipients. They are also generating more powerful treatments for the conditions that make transplants necessary in the first place.
An advance in the fight against organ rejection
Helping to lead the charge is Dr. John Belperio, chief and professor of medicine in the Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep Medicine, Clinical Immunology and Allergy at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. He says the research efforts taking place on campus hold immense potential for improving lives.
“UCLA teams are making real strides in the understanding of a range of serious lung conditions,” says Dr. Belperio, who holds the Guitiara Pierpoint Endowed Chair in Interstitial Pulmonary Fibrosis. “We’re making diagnosis easier, risk factors and disease mechanisms clearer, and treatments and transplants more effective.”
A key milestone in Belperio’s team’s work is the development of an inhaler that can deliver immunosuppressant drugs directly to the lungs. Pending clinical trials, this intervention may reduce the chances of organ rejection. In comparison, the current approach suppresses the entire body’s immune system and can leave people vulnerable to dangerous infections.
A new era in lung science
In 2019, UCLA Health announced the Lung Health Research Accelerator Fund in tandem with a fundraising campaign for the creation of a center for advanced lung disease. In 2025, the university moved a critical step closer to that objective, sharing news of a $20 million gift from the Saul and Joyce Brandman Foundation. Buoyed by this new philanthropy, UCLA will launch the UCLA Saul and Joyce Brandman Foundation Center for Lung Health and intends to establish endowed chairs and additional dedicated research funds.
“We are entering a new era in pulmonary science. It’s an incredibly exciting time to be doing this work — my team and I are able to explore treatments and techniques that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago,” Dr. Belperio says. “From understanding the genetics of disease to the potential of stem cell therapies, our goal is to be able to ‘zoom in’ and understand, prevent and cure lung conditions at their most fundamental level. All this will mean better outcomes for a group of diseases that affect millions of people worldwide.”
To support research in lung transplantation, contact
Larissa Harrison • 310-592-5613
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Dr. John Belperio and his team employ Luminex technology, which enables them to identify immune markers and hence prevent organ rejection and improve outcomes.
Here, Dr. Belperio uses a versatile microscope capable of advanced imaging techniques for both discovery and clinical diagnosis.
Dr. Belperio and colleagues like Dr. Vyacheslav Palchevskiy (right) hope to improve the long-term survival rate of lung transplant patients.
Endowed giving allows members of Dr. Belperio’s team, like laboratory surgeon Ying Ying Xue, to conduct important research into the science of lung transplantation.
