Operation in the USA
“Am I going to grunt?” – The patient is implanted with a genetically modified pig heart
The surgeon Bartley Griffith (left) took a selfie with the patient after the successful operation
© Bartley Griffith / University of Maryland Medical Center / AP / DPA
The idea is adventurous – but the operation has evidently succeeded: In the USA, doctors say they have successfully inserted a pig heart for the first time.
This operation in the USA could be a hope for many heart patients, because there, according to their own statements, doctors have successfully inserted the heart of a genetically modified pig into a patient for the first time. The 57-year-old patient is fine three days after the transplant, the medical school of the University of Maryland said on Monday (local time). “This organ transplant showed for the first time that the heart of a genetically modified animal can function like a human heart without immediate rejection by the body.”
“This was a groundbreaking operation that brings us one step closer to solving the organ shortage crisis,” said Bartley Griffith, surgeon who implanted the pig heart. “We want to proceed cautiously. But we are also optimistic that this world’s first operation will give patients an important new option in the future.”
Pig heart was the patient’s last resort
According to the information, the patient suffered from end-stage heart disease. The pig heart transplant was the “only” treatment option, said the University of Maryland. Because the man was not approved for a conventional organ transplant.
“I had a choice to die or have this transplant,” said patient David Bennett, according to a university statement before the operation Friday. “I want to live. I know it’s a shot in the dark, but it’s my last choice.” The US Food and Drug Administration had granted emergency approval for the procedure. Bennett, who had been bedridden on a heart-lung machine for the past few months, added, “I look forward to getting out of bed after my recovery.”
The “New York Times” reports on the conversation that the doctor and patient had had beforehand. The doctor had told the patient that he could not get a human heart, but the heart of an animal could be taken. “It has never been done “Surgeon Griffith is said to have said.” I wasn’t sure if he understood me, “said Griffith. But then the patient asked,” Am I going to grunt? “
The pig the heart came from had been genetically modified to eliminate a gene that makes a certain sugar. Otherwise, this sugar would have triggered a strong immune reaction in the patient, which would have led to the organ being rejected. A gene that would have caused excessive growth in pig heart tissue was also “switched off”. A total of four pig genes have been eliminated and six human genes have been added to the pig’s genome to prevent cardiac rejection by Bennett’s body.
The biotech company Revivicor, based in the US state of Virginia, is responsible for the genetic changes. The pig that was used in a groundbreaking kidney transplant on a brain-dead patient in New York in October had already delivered the pig.
While this previous procedure was only an experiment to test the concept and the kidney was connected to the patient’s bloodstream outside the body, the new procedure is intended to save more human lives in the future. The scientists had stored the animal organ in a preservation machine before implantation. During the procedure, the doctors also used a new experimental drug to suppress the immune system.
Hundreds of thousands of people in the US hope for a donor organ
In the USA alone, around 110,000 people are currently waiting for a donor organ. According to official figures, more than 6,000 people die each year before a transplant can be performed.
Because of the shortage of human donor organs, research is placing great hopes in what is known as xenotransplantation – the transplanting of animal organs. Heart valves are already being transplanted from pigs and pig skin in burn victims. Pigs are ideal donor animals due to their size, rapid growth and good breeding characteristics. In addition, they are more socially accepted as donor animals, since they are already slaughtered for food.
Sources: AFP / “New York Times“
See in the video: Joe DiMeo from the USA had his face and both hands transplanted for the first time in just one operation. The 22-year-old was in a serious car accident in 2018. The fact that he can now move his fingers again is a “medical miracle”.