What Happens If You Have To Live With 1 Lung Like Pope Francis?

Pope Francis (Wikimedia Commons/Aletia Image Department)

YOGYAKARTA - Pope Francis' visit to Indonesia for three days has attracted the attention of many people, especially Catholics. In the agenda from 3-6 September 2024, the Pope carried out various important activities such as cross-religious dialogue at the Istiqlal Mosque and led a grand mass at GBK.

Pope Francis is a leader of the world's Catholics who is a role model for many people. The Pope is known as an example in various aspects of life. One thing that can be learned from is the high spirit of life even though he only has one lungs.

Pope Francis lived with one lungs from a young age. Despite these shortcomings, the Pope is still living his life optimistically and has carried out many positive activities until now he is 87 years old.

So how did Pope Francis initially have one lung? So what happens if he lives with 1 lung?

Quoting from the Associated Press, Pope Francis underwent surgery to remove part of his lungs as a teenager, most likely due to infection. At that time, antibiotic treatment may not have been as successful as it is now, especially in dealing with infections.

To prevent the infection from getting worse, doctors may decide to remove the lungs to prevent it from spreading.

"Maybe at that time the infection was very severe, or maybe there was abscess so that bleeding occurred," said Dr John Belperio, a lung expert from The David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, USA.

"If there is heavy bleeding in the lungs, the main thing that must be done is to exercise or take lungs to stop bleeding," he added.

According to Dr. Ronald Crystal, a pulmonary expert from New York Presbyterian, there are various types of bacteria that can cause severe infection and damage to lung tissue. Some strains of bacteria such as Staphylocacici are the most destructive and can destroy sensitive organs, so doctors may be forced to remove damaged tissues to prevent further damage.

Infections such as pneumonia, fungal infections, or tuberculosis can also cause initial damage which, if not treated, can lead to the removal of part of the lungs. Lung removal operations can also be carried out due to congenital defects from birth.

Conditions of defects can cause abnormalities in lung tissue or abnormal blood vessels growth in alveoli, thus disrupting breathing.

Fortunately, the lungs have a fairly large spare capacity. With this ability, losing one lung will not affect the overall health.

Humans can still survive with only one lung and still have the opportunity to live a normal life. Pope Francis and extreme sports athlete Jothy Rosenberg are real examples.

However, living with one lung can limit a person's physical abilities. For example, a person's ability to exercise or do strenuous physical activity.

After losing one lung, the body will adapt. The remaining lungs will likely expand slightly to fill the empty space left by the lungs removed.

Over time, the body will also adjust to compensate for oxygen shortages. One lung owners must also learn to slow down their normal activities to a certain extent.

Although someone undergoing a pneumectomi or surgery to remove part of the lungs can live a normal life, limitations in physical activity cannot be ignored.

The recovery and rehabilitation process of the lungs can help strengthen the remaining lungs and gradually increase their lung function.

One of the challenges facing Pope Francis is the lower lung functionality than those with two lungs. This condition makes him more prone to complications such as flu or pneumonia.

That's a review of what happens if you live with 1 lung as experienced by Pope Francis. Humans can still live and carry out activities even though there is only 1 lung in their body. But besides that they have several weaknesses. Also read why the Pope chose the name Francis.

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