History: The 1,000th lung transplant was performed at Billinson Hospital

The Pulmonology Department and the Department of Thoracic Surgery at Beilinson Hospital, from the Klalit Group, celebrate an unprecedented achievement at the national and international level: the completion of the 1,000th lung transplant in Israel. Billinson Hospital, which performs the vast majority of lung transplants in the country, has reached the round and significant number for the first time in Israel, which places it in line with the leading and largest transplant centers in the world.

Behind the number “1,000” stand a thousand men and women who received a second chance at life and air to breathe, alongside teams from many fields in Bilinson who work around the clock to enable the success of transplants: surgeons, anesthetists, anesthesia technicians, transplant coordinators, operating room nurses, the blood bank, medical transporters, the tissue classification laboratory and heart-lung machine operators.

Bilinson leads the transplant field in Israel and is the only center in Israel that performs all types of organ transplants, using the most advanced technologies and survival rates that meet the strictest international standards.

Asahel’s family in Abed: “Asahel always felt God’s mission to do good for the people of Israel and it was clear to us from the first moment that if there was a way to save lives even after Asahel’s passing, it was the right thing to do. It warms the heart to know that this is the 1,000th lung transplant at Billinson Hospital, and we hope that this will be the opening signal for thousands more transplants that will take place in the future with God’s help. We wish the transplantee health and longevity. The lung transplant sharpens once again what a wonderful people Israel is, a people for whom Asahel gave his life.”

Amram Hazan, the lung transplant recipient in Bilinson: “I am very grateful to the noble family who donated my lungs and I wish them health and success. Thanks to them I was able to breathe again on my own and came back to life after being in a difficult situation. We prayed that I would be the 1,000th transplant recipient because my condition worsened. My wife went to the Baba Sali celebration, and as soon as she left we were informed that I was receiving lungs. The operation went smoothly and without pain and I thank the doctors of Billinson for everything.”

Dr. Erez Barenboim, director of Beilinson and Sharon Hospitals from the Klalit Group: “This historic achievement would not have come to fruition without the extraordinary generosity of spirit of the donors and their families. And without the cooperation of the National Transplant Center, which accompanies the donor families in these difficult and important steps. We bow our heads in deep gratitude to the families who chose to perform the noblest and holiest act imaginable – giving life to others out of the deepest rift and the heaviest loss. The ability to reach out and save souls in moments of abysmal tragedy is a testament to the power of giving and mutual guarantee in Israeli society, and it is what allows us at Bilinson to continue to work miracles every day.”

Dr. Osnat Livna-Streichman, director of the Lung Institute in Bilinson from the Klalit Group: “In every transplant, when we call the patient to come for the lung transplant, the excitement that a person will get back air to breathe and, in fact, life, is always accompanied by pain because the loss of one family is the life of another family. The noble and touching contribution of the family of the warrior Asael in the late Abed gave new life to Amram. We thank and appreciate their contribution and every contribution of a family that does this holy act. We are excited to accompany Amram in his further journey as a transplant along with many transplant recipients whom we accompany. On this occasion, we would like to mention the person who took part and accompanied the many transplant recipients over the years, Prof. Mordechai Kramer, one of the leaders of lung transplants in Israel and the former director of the lung system in Belinson. Working alongside him was Ilana Bekel, a responsible nurse and transplant coordinator, who accompanied hundreds of transplant recipients along the way and their return to life.”

Dr. Yuri Peishovitz, director of the thoracic surgery department in Bilinson from the Klalit Group: “This is a moment of immense pride, not only for the hospital but for the entire Israeli healthcare system. The achievement is the result of hard work by multidisciplinary teams who work tirelessly to save lives and gain skills and experience that further improves our capabilities.”

The head of the Binyamin Council and chairman of the Yesha Council, Israel Gantz: “For two years, Asahel in Abed Hid insisted time and time again to go out, fight and defend the State of Israel. First in Judea and Samaria, and later in the Gaza Strip. He refused to take ‘no’ for an answer, and went out to save lives. Even after his tragic death, his organs continue to save lives. Asahel is the 60th fallen in the regional council Benjamin, and represents a generation of warriors who acted with dedication, responsibility and love for the country – this is the spirit that Benjamin brings with him: people who jump into battle to save lives, even at the cost of their own lives. We are blessed to have sons who save human lives – in their lives and in their deaths.”