In a medical first, researchers have successfully performed the first-ever kidney transplant from a genetically altered pig into a living person.
The patient, 62-year-old manager Rick Slayman of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, underwent the historic four-hour surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital, a pioneer in transplant techniques.
After undergoing surgery, Mr. Slayman, who was diagnosed with end-stage kidney disease, is reportedly doing well and should be released from the hospital shortly.
Thousands of patients waiting for organ transplants now have hope after the surgery, which represents a major turning point in the field of transplant medicine.
Speaking on the accomplishment, the surgeon who carried out the surgery, Dr. Tatsuo Kawai, director of the Legorreta Center for Clinical Transplant Tolerance, expressed amazement at the procedure’s success.
“It ‘pinked up’ and started to produce pee as soon as they stitched it in, joining its blood vessels to Slayman’s. “It was the most beautiful kidney I have ever seen,” Dr. Kawai tearfully remarked at a press conference.