Second Patient Dies After Receiving Transplanted Pig Heart
In a highly experimental surgery, the second person to receive a transplanted heart from a pig has died, according to his doctors in Maryland. Lawrence Faucette, 58, who was suffering from heart failure and deemed ineligible for a traditional heart transplant, received the genetically modified pig heart on September 20.
Initially, the heart appeared healthy, but after a month, signs of rejection started to emerge. Faucette sadly passed away on Monday. His wife, Ann, expressed in a statement released by the hospital that her husband knew his time was limited and saw this experimental surgery as his last chance to help others, never expecting to survive as long as he did.
The University of Maryland School of Medicine’s team had previously performed the world’s first transplant of a heart from a genetically altered pig into another patient. However, that patient, David Bennett, only survived for two months before the heart failed. Although the exact cause was unclear, signs of a pig virus were later found in the organ. Lessons from this initial experiment led to improvements, including better virus testing, before attempting the second transplant.
Dr. Bartley Griffith, the surgeon who led the transplant at the University of Maryland Medical Center, stated that Faucette’s last wish was for the medical team to make the most of what they had learned from their experience.
Xenotransplants, the transplantation of animal organs into humans, have historically failed due to immediate rejection by the human immune system. However, scientists are now attempting to overcome this challenge by using pigs that have been genetically modified to produce organs more similar to those of humans.
Faucette, a Navy veteran and father of two from Frederick, Maryland, was turned down for a traditional heart transplant due to other health complications. He arrived at the Maryland hospital with limited options, hoping to spend more time with his family.
In mid-October, the hospital reported that Faucette had been able to stand and released a video showing his determination during physical therapy to regain the strength necessary for walking.
Dr. Muhammad Mohiuddin, the chief of cardiac xenotransplantation, stated that the team will analyze what happened with Faucette’s heart as they continue their study of pig organs.
Xenotransplants hold the potential to address the significant shortage of human organ donations, with over 100,000 people on the national transplant waiting list, primarily for kidneys. Several scientific teams have conducted tests on pig kidneys and hearts in monkeys and donated human bodies, aiming to gather enough data for the Food and Drug Administration to approve formal xenotransplant studies.
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