Norway's Crown Princess Mette-Marit Prepares for Lung Transplant
OSLO, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Norway's Crown Princess Mette-Marit is expected to undergo a lung transplant following a deterioration of her health in recent months, the royal household said on Friday.
The 52-year-old wife of Crown Prince Haakon, the heir to the Norwegian throne, was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis in 2018, a chronic disease that causes scarring in the lungs and leads to a reduced oxygen uptake.
"This autumn, several tests have been performed that show a clear negative development in the crown princess's health," the palace said in a statement.
It has not yet been decided when Mette-Marit will be placed on the transplant waiting list, it added.
"We are approaching the time when a lung transplant must be performed, and we are making the necessary preparations so that it will be possible when that time comes," Professor Are Martin Holm of the Oslo University Hospital's pulmonary unit said in the same statement.
(Reporting by Terje Solsvik; Editing by Kate Mayberry)
