Explanted Lung Tissues With Pulmonary Fibrosis

Summary

The goal of this study is to use the tissues from the explanted lungs in order to better study the cause of pulmonary fibrosis at a cellular level.

Detailed Description

Pulmonary Fibrosis involves scarring of the lung. Gradually, the air sacs of the lungs become replaced by fibrotic tissue. The most current thinking is that the fibrotic process is a reaction to tiny injury to the lung. When the scar forms, the tissue becomes thicker causing a permanent loss of the tissue's ability to carry oxygen into the bloodstream. We need to obtain lung tissue from patients without pulmonary fibrosis and compare it to lung tissue from patients with pulmonary fibrosis.

Eligibility Criteria