Scientists consider xenotransplantation, that is, the transplantation of pig organs into humans, as a promising area of transplantation, which will make it more accessible to people in need. However, until the last moment there were not many successful operations. For example, scientists transplanted a pig heart twice, but after some time both patients died. Attempts to transplant a kidney were already made several years ago, but the operations were carried out on people who were already brain dead, that is, exclusively in test mode. Only in the spring of 2024, for the first time, a kidney was transplanted into a living person, and he remained alive, however, it is too early to talk about final results, since too little time has passed. Nevertheless, doctors decided to go even further – they transplanted a kidney and thymus gland from a pig to a human, and also implanted a heart pump. Such an operation was performed for the first time in the history of medicine.
Scientists performed a unique operation to transplant a pig kidney into a person. Photo source: NYU Langone Health
Why some people need porcine organ transplants
Scientists usually resort to transplanting pig organs into humans in extreme cases, when there is no other chance to save a life. This was the case during a heart transplant for a 58-year-old man, Lawrence Fawcett. The same thing happened this time – the patient was 54-year-old Lisa Pisano, who was diagnosed with heart failure and the last stage of kidney disease, requiring regular dialysis to cleanse the blood.
However, the woman was not eligible for a human organ transplant because she had several chronic diseases. She was a “bad candidate,” the scientists said. The fact is that the number of human organs is limited, as a result of which many people wait a long time for their turn. Therefore, to qualify for an organ transplant, people must meet certain requirements, which ensure that the donor organs will not be wasted.
In addition, due to the characteristics of the patient's body, finding a kidney that would match her immune system system, it was very difficult. Scientists report that she would have to wait years for a donor organ.
Heart pump and porcine kidney transplant
As already mentioned, attempts to transplant a pig heart into a person ended in the death of the patient. Therefore, doctors from the academic medical center NYU Langone Health did not risk such a transplant, but decided to use a mechanical heart pump, that is, a left ventricular assist device (LVAD). However, performing this operation was risky while the woman was “tied” to dialysis.
As mentioned above, it was not possible to find a suitable human kidney for the next few years, but heart surgery was urgently required. The woman had only a few weeks to live. As a result, the decision was made to transplant a pig kidney. As we have previously reported, test kidney transplant operations were successful. In addition, there is already one patient who lives with a pork kidney.
The kidney transplant operation was successful — the new organ was not rejected. Photo source: www.livescience.com
In early April, the woman underwent two operations. She was implanted with a heart pump, a pig kidney and a thymus gland. According to scientists, the latter helps “train the immune cells” of the body. Simply put, the thymus gland is supposed to help prevent the immune system from rejecting the kidney.
Unique kidney transplant operation was successful
According to NYU Langone Health officials, the operation was unique for several reasons. First, no LVAD patient has ever received so much as a human kidney transplant. Therefore, scientists were not sure that the operation would be successful. In addition, the very fact of a kidney and thymus transplant from a pig to a human, which is also being carried out for the first time, is surprising. However, the woman supported this idea, since she still had no other choice.
For organ transplantation, scientists use specially bred genetically modified pigs
As scientists report, the thymus gland was implanted into a transplanted kidney. They hope that the gland will not only “reprogram” the immune system and help avoid rejection of a new organ, but also allow a woman to take lower doses of immunosuppressive drugs.
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12 days after the operation, the transplanted kidney is working perfectly and there are no signs of rejection. However, before the woman is discharged, she will have to spend some time in a rehabilitation center to fully recover. If the experiment is successful, such operations could become much more common and could save a huge number of lives.