Because of a multitude of medical issues, Joyce Stovall didn’t think she’d recover from a lung transplant.

But after more than 20 years on supplemental oxygen, Stovall is now breathing easier. She no longer needs her oxygen tank, thanks to an innovative, minimally invasive procedure performed at Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Fort Worth.

Sai Karan Vamsi Guda, D.O., an interventional pulmonologist on the medical staff at Texas Health Fort Worth, performed the non-surgical procedure, which is used to treat patients with severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or emphysema.

Endobronchial valves, each about the size of a pencil eraser, were implanted in Stovall’s lungs, allowing trapped air to be exhaled, shrinking the diseased lobe and preventing further air blockage.

Patients receiving the therapy see a 15% to 20% improvement in lung function capacity, on average, Guda said. But more important are the benefits they’re seeing in their lives.

“For Mrs. Stovall, it meant being able to come off oxygen and walk a little distance. Now, she and her husband are looking at going dancing, which she could not even imagine doing 20 years ago,” Guda said.

Stovall is most appreciative.

“Everything is better,” Stovall added. “It’s given me a better quality of life.”

Joseph DeLeon, president of Texas Health Fort Worth, said innovation has been a hallmark of Texas Health’s commitment to improve the health of the people in the communities it serves.

“Thanks to talented physicians on the medical staff who are skilled in advanced technology and our dedicated caregivers, many of our patients are finding relief and better outcomes, all without the need for surgery,” DeLeon said.

See KXAS/NBC 5’s story about Mrs. Stovall here.