Doctors in America recently performed a groundbreaking procedure that involved a mechanical heart pump combined with a pig kidney transplant for a living patient. The patient, Lisa Pisano, 54, from New Jersey, had heart failure and end-stage kidney disease, requiring regular hemodialysis. The transplant took place at NYU Langone Hospital, where she had a heart pump inserted on April 4 to address her weak heart. Following this, she received a gene-edited pig kidney transplant on April 12.
This is the first reported instance of an organ transplant in a human using a mechanical heart pump and the second pig kidney transplant into a living person. The first person to receive a gene-edited pig kidney transplant has already been discharged healthy from Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Robert Montgomery, who led the surgery at NYU Langone Hospital, highlighted Pisano’s poor health condition and critical need for the procedure.
The kidney used in the transplant came from a pig with a gene modification that made it less likely to be rejected by the human immune system. Dr. Montgomery emphasized the potential of gene editing in pig organs for transplants, which could address the shortage of organ donors. Pisano’s recovery is being closely monitored for any complications like transplant rejection or infections, and doctors anticipate she will require at least a month to fully recover and leave the hospital.
Pisano expressed significant improvements in her quality of life following the surgery, stating that she now experiences comfort she hasn’t had in a long time. The procedure has opened up new possibilities for terminally ill patients with limited treatment options, and doctors are hopeful that the regulatory authorities will support xenotransplantation under a humane policy to help more patients in need.