Kidney transplanted from pig to human for the first time 1:00
(CNN) -
A 57-year-old Maryland man is doing well three days after receiving a genetically modified pig heart in transplant surgery, the first of its kind, the University of Maryland Medicine said in a news release this week. Monday.
David Bennett was suffering from terminal heart disease, and the pig heart was "the only option currently available," according to the statement.
He was deemed unsuitable for a conventional heart transplant or artificial heart pump after reviewing his medical history.
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"It was either die or do this transplant. I want to live. I know it is a shot in the air, but it is my last option," Bennett said before the operation, according to the statement.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) urgently authorized the operation on December 31.
Three genes responsible for the rejection of pig organs by the human immune system were removed from the donor pig, and a gene was removed to prevent overgrowth of porcine heart tissue.
Six human genes responsible for immune acceptance were inserted.
Successful first transplant of a pig kidney to a human being achieved
Bennett's doctors will have to watch him for days or weeks to see if the transplant is working to save his life.
The patient will be monitored for possible immune system problems or other complications.
(Credit: courtesy of the University of Maryland)
"There just aren't enough human donor hearts available to serve the long list of potential recipients," said surgeon Dr. Bartley P. Griffith.
"We are proceeding with caution, but we are also optimistic that this surgery, the first in the world, will provide an important new option for patients in the future."
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Pigs' heart valves have been transplanted into humans for many years.
In October, surgeons successfully tested a genetically modified pig kidney transplant in a New York woman who was brain dead.
Pig transplant
