Norway's Crown Princess Mette-Marit needs lung transplant or faces death within a year

According to the Norwegian royal court, Crown Princess Mette-Marit's health has critically deteriorated. Due to pulmonary fibrosis, she has been placed on a lung transplant waiting list – a list for patients whose life expectancy without transplantation is estimated at less than a year.

The Norwegian royal court announced that Crown Princess Mette-Marit has been placed on a lung transplant waiting list, as her health has sharply deteriorated over recent months. The Crown Princess suffers from pulmonary fibrosis – a progressive disease that irreversibly damages the lungs.

Patients are typically placed on the lung transplant waiting list when their condition is so serious that without a transplant they may not survive more than a year. This means Mette-Marit's condition has been classified as medically critical.

Crown Princess Mette-Marit first publicly disclosed her pulmonary fibrosis diagnosis in 2018. The royal court has since periodically informed the public about her health status, but this current announcement is the most serious signal yet of the disease's progression.

Lung transplantation is a complex and risky procedure, but in many cases the only way to extend the lifespan of patients with pulmonary fibrosis. Finding a suitable donor organ can take from months to years, and the condition of patients on the waiting list is continuously monitored.