US doctors perform 'breakthrough' transplantation of pig's heart into human patient

In a first-of-its-kind surgery, doctors in the US' Maryland School of Medicine transplanted a genetically modified pig's heart into a human patient. The last-ditch effort was made to save a patient David Bennett when he was diagnosed with terminal heart disease and became ineligible for accepting a human heart. On Monday, doctors at the medical facility confirmed that 57-year-old Bennett was "doing well" three days after the highly-experimental animal-to-human surgery. However, they cautioned that it was indeed too early to comment on the tentative step and overall success of the operation.

The xenotransplantation (transplantation of tissues between different species) has marked a significant step forward in the decades-long quest to replace human organs with that of animals in life-saving operations. Following the surgery, doctors explained that as of now it can be said a heart from a genetically modified animal "can function" in the human body "without immediate rejection." The surgery was performed even though there was a lack of guarantee about post-operative success.

"It was either die or do this transplant. I want to live. I know it’s a shot in the dark, but it’s my last choice,” Bennett said a day before the surgery, as quoted by The Guardian, citing a statement provided by the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

Meanwhile, doctors are awaiting Bennett's post-op recovery to determine how his heart is and will be faring. On Monday, the patient was breathing on his own while still connected to a heart-lung support machine to help his newly transplanted heart. "If this works, there will be an endless supply of these organs for patients who are suffering," said Dr. Muhammad Mohinuddin, scientific director of the xenotransplantation program at the University of Maryland.

[57-year-old David Bennett (right) received a genetically-modified pig's heart three days ago. Image: AP]

Animal-to-human transplants could meet shortage of organ donations in US

If successful, xenotransplantation could meet the shortage of organs for transplantation in the US. As per United Network for Organ Sharing, in 2021, there were about 3,800 human-to-human heart transplants, a record in many years so far. Nevertheless, earlier attempts of animal-to-human transplant have majorly failed due to the rapid rejection of transplanted organs in the human body. However, doctors at Maryland are hopeful this time as the heart used had undergone "gene-editing" to remove sugar cells responsible for hyper-fast organ rejection.

The surgery at Maryland takes animal-to-human transplants to the "next level," said Dr. Robert Montgomery, who led the experiment in New York University Langone Health. “As a heart transplant recipient, myself with a genetic heart disorder, I am thrilled by this news and the hope it gives to my family and other patients who will eventually be saved by this breakthrough," he said in a statement.

“This is a truly remarkable breakthrough,” Dr. Montgomery said.

(Image: AP)