'Boston Med' Episode 1: Double Lung Transplant

June 24, 2010 — -- For patients suffering terminal lung disease, the Lung Transplant Program at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston is a beacon of hope.

Surgeons at Brigham can take what look like impossible cases and perform work that invites the label "miracle."

One of the many expert surgeons at Brigham, resident Dr. Daniel "Dibar" DiBardino is an up-and-coming star. After nearly a decade of training in the ultra-demanding cardiothoracic program, DiBardino, cocky and self-assured, is approaching the top of his game.

In April, DiBardino and his colleagues would be put to the test. A donor came up for two patients desperately awaiting lung transplants. A double transplant was suddenly in order. DiBardino was in charge of harvesting the lungs from the donor. He had had two hours' sleep.

Watch the premiere episode of "Boston Med" tonight at 10 p.m. ET

"Boston Med" cameras followed DiBardino and the senior attending physicians -- notably Dr. Michael D. Jacklitch and Dr. Phillip Camp, director of the transplant center -- in the lead-up to and aftermath of the surgery. We also spoke with lung recipients Maureen Bishop, 62, and Mary Ann White, 63, and their families.

"She is on oxygen 24-7 and the cord that she uses is a pain," said Ed White, Mary Ann's husband. "I was tripping over it and so was she."

Click HERE for more information on "Boston Med," an eight-part series of real-life medical drama taking an in-depth look at doctors, nurses and patients as well as the medical conditions that affect their daily lives.

Maureen Bishop, 62, had smoked cigarettes and worked in heavy industry for decades. As a result, she developed emphysema. She could not breathe without an oxygen tank trailing her every step. She yearned for the simple things -- walking her dog, grocery shopping, attending church. She had been waiting for a lung transplant for three years.

Mary Ann White, 63, had no idea how she developed the progressive degenerative lung disease called idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). A widowed mother of four with a gaggle of grandchildren and an adoring new husband, White also was on oxygen around the clock. She had waited 13 months for a transplant.

On April 5, 2009, White and Bishop received incredible news. They were each to receive a new lung from the same donor.

ABC News' Mary Flynn contributed to this report.