A 62-year-old man has undergone a groundbreaking surgery where he received a genetically modified pig kidney, marking a historic milestone in the field of medicine. The operation took place on Saturday, March 16, at Massachusetts General Hospital in the United States.
The four-hour surgery was deemed a success by the hospital, and the man is currently recovering well. This achievement opens up possibilities for organ transplantation between different species and could be a potential solution to the global shortage of organs for transplant.
The man had previously received a human kidney transplant in 2018 due to kidney disease. However, the transplanted organ stopped working after five years, leading him to return to dialysis. Faced with a limited future outlook, he decided to undergo an organ transplant with a genetically modified pig kidney as a last resort.
In a statement, the man expressed his hope that this pioneering surgery not only benefits him but also provides hope to others in need of organ transplants. This breakthrough comes after a genetically modified pig kidney was successfully transplanted into a brain-dead human in 2021, with previous instances of pig hearts being transplanted into humans in 2022.