Outcomes after lung transplantation remain worse compared to other solid organ transplants, which is in large part due to high rates of graft rejection. Despite emerging data that immune responses to lungs differ from other organs, immunosuppression for lung transplant recipients is still based on strategies established for recipients of other grafts. There exists an urgent need to develop immunosuppressive strategies for lung transplant recipients that take the unique immunological features of this organ into account.
Keywords: adaptive immunity; chronic rejection; graft rejection; immunosuppression; innate immunity; lung transplantation.