Rabin Medical Center in Petah Tikva performed Israel’s 1,000th lung transplant this week, the hospital said on Thursday.
The announcement comes after the family of IDF reservist Master Sgt. (res.) Asael Babad donated his organs following his death on January 22, 2026. The lungs were transplanted into Amram Hazan, 53, of Netivot, who suffered from advanced chronic lung disease.
The hospital described the milestone as placing Israel alongside the world’s leading transplant centers.
Hazan, a father of nine, said he is “breathing on my own again” and thanked the donor family and medical teams for saving his life. He said his condition had worsened, and the family prayed he would become the 1,000th recipient, adding that the call for surgery came as his wife left the Baba Sali hilula.
Babad’s family said he “always felt a divine mission to do good for the people of Israel,” adding that donating his organs was “the right thing to do” and expressing hope that the milestone signals many more lifesaving transplants to come.
Multidisciplinary teams behind 1,000 operations
The hospital said the milestone reflects round-the-clock work by surgeons, anesthesiologists, transplant coordinators, operating room nurses, blood bank and transport staff, tissue-typing laboratory teams, and heart-lung machine operators. Rabin Medical Center performs the vast majority of Israel’s lung transplants and is the only medical center in the country that performs all types of organ transplants, the hospital said.
Dr. Yury Peysakhovich, head of Thoracic Surgery, called the 1,000th procedure a moment of “immense pride,” crediting years of accumulated skills and experience that have improved outcomes.
Dr. Erez Barenboim, CEO of Rabin Medical Center, said the achievement was possible thanks to the generosity of donor families and cooperation with the National Transplant Center. “The ability to reach out and save lives in moments of profound tragedy is testimony to the power of giving and mutual responsibility,” he said.
Dr. Osnat Livneh Streichman, head of the Pulmonology Institute, noted the dual emotions of every transplant, saying the joy of renewed breathing for one family is accompanied by another family’s loss. She thanked the Babad family for their “moving and noble” donation.