According to the hospital that performed the procedure, the first man to receive a kidney transplant from a genetically engineered pig passed away two months after the procedure.
Prior to his March surgery, Richard “Rick” Slayman, 62, was experiencing end-stage kidney illness. According to a statement from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) on Sunday, there was no proof that the transplant caused his death. Although previous attempts to transplant other organs from genetically modified pigs have failed, Mr. Slayman’s procedure was heralded as a historic first. Apart from kidney illness, Mr. Slayman also had hypertension and Type 2 diabetes. He received a human kidney transplant in 2018, but after five years, it started to malfunction. His physicians verified he didn’t require dialysis after his pig kidney transplant on March 16 because the replacement organ appeared to be operating well.
“Mr Slayman will forever be seen as a beacon of hope to countless transplant patients worldwide and we are deeply grateful for his trust and willingness to advance the field of xenotransplantation,” MGH stated in a statement. Transplanting live cells, tissues, or organs from one species to another is known as xenotransplantation. MGH expressed its sympathies to his family and stated it was “deeply saddened” by his unexpected demise. According to Mr. Slayman’s family, his narrative served as motivation. “Rick said that one of the reasons he underwent this procedure was to provide hope for the thousands of people who need a transplant to survive,” they stated.
“Rick accomplished that goal and his hope and optimism will endure forever.
“To us, Rick was a kind-hearted man with a quick-witted sense of humour who was fiercely dedicated to his family, friends, and co-workers,” they added.
Although Mr. Slayman’s kidney was the first to be put into a person, pig organs have been utilized in transplant procedures before. A few weeks after receiving pig heart transplants, two other patients passed away, indicating that the treatment was failed. One patient reported indications that their immune system had rejected the transplanted organ, which is a frequent danger associated with the procedure.
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