Minimally Invasive Lung Procedure Leads to a Breath of Fresh Air

BLVR. It stands for bronchoscopic lung volume reduction. It’s a new alternative to traditional lung surgery offered at Lehigh Valley Health Network that has changed the lives of many patients with severe cases of emphysema or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

One of those patients is Robert Wagner, a 59-year-old Bloomsburg, Pa., resident who witnessed COPD slowly take the life of his brother Rick at age 64. He had been a lifelong chain smoker just like his brother, and now it was his lungs being ravaged the same way.

“I felt I was out of options,” says Wagner, a retired landscaper was diagnosed with COPD in 2013. “My left lung was totally shot. I couldn’t walk 50 feet without having to stop to catch my breath. I was hoping I could get a lung transplant or something before it was too late.”

Wagner’s family doctor referred him to LVPG Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine in Allentown, Pa., where he met with pulmonology specialist Daniel Schwed-Lustgarten, MD. Dr. Schwed-Lustgarten spoke to him about BLVR.

COPD occurs when damaged portions of your lungs lose their ability to release trapped air and become overinflated (hyperinflation). Lung volume reduction surgery, where damaged portions of the lung are removed to aid in breathing, has been the traditional option. But BLVR is a minimally invasive option that has shown positive results.

“BLVR is a nonsurgical option that places a series of one-way valves which we place in the most affected parts of the lung, allowing air to escape out of the lung and thus reducing hyperinflation,” Dr. Schwed-Lustgarten says. “Robert presented with end-stage COPD and was a good candidate. This procedure offers the same benefits as lung volume reduction surgery but is reversible if necessary.”

BLVR was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2018. LVHN began offering the procedure in June 2021 and has had good results thus far. Improving lung function even 10-15 percent is considered successful. But Wagner’s improvement has far exceeded that.

“By the third day after the procedure, I was off oxygen and up walking around,” says Wagner, who had the procedure in February. “I did a few weeks of rehab exercises and I’m feeling much better, walking around and doing things more normally.  Look, I’m never going to be 100 percent myself again, but my quality of life has improved a lot and I’m grateful for that.”

Dr. Schwed-Lustgarten believes BLVR will benefit many people like Robert who believe they’re out of options.

“With the help of the leading-edge technology we’re able to provide at Lehigh Valley Health Network, Robert is living a significantly better life,” Dr. Schwed-Lustgarten says. “That’s our primary goal in these cases.”