Transplants

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Pig kidney works in a donated body for over a month, a step toward animal-human transplants

NEW YORK (AP) — Surgeons transplanted a pig’s kidney into a brain-dead man and for over a month it’s worked normally — a critical step toward an operation the New York team hopes to eventually try in living patients.

https://apnews.com/article/transplant-pig-human-animal-organs-xenotransplant-a28c56bb67314d11d9e8e34763f3ad34?

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Pig kidney works a record 2 months in donated body, raising hope for animal-human transplants

NEW YORK (AP) — Dozens of doctors and nurses silently lined the hospital hallway in tribute: For a history-making two months, a pig’s kidney worked normally inside the brain-dead man on the gurney rolling past them.

https://apnews.com/article/pig-kidney-transplant-xenotransplant-83dfb5e6d022ca72039a821cc6bc00ef?

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1st cases of donated organs likely causing Legionnaires' into 2 transplant recipients

The first cases of patients likely contracting Legionnaires' disease from transplanted organs have been identified in a new report.

https://local.newsbreak.com/pennsylvania-state/3157235608290-1st-cases-of-donated-organs-likely-causing-legionnaires-into-2-transplant-recipients?

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Surgeons perform second pig heart transplant, trying to save a dying man

WASHINGTON (AP) — Surgeons have transplanted a pig’s heart into a dying man in a bid to prolong his life – only the second patient to ever undergo such an experimental feat. Two days later, the man was cracking jokes and able to sit in a chair, Maryland doctors said Friday.

https://apnews.com/article/pig-heart-transplant-d894f6ce27b7db71ecb0ec393cac3e86?

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With pig-to-human heart transplant, a man hoped to advance medicine. He died weeks later.

The second patient to receive a pig heart in place of his own has died. He lived just six weeks, two weeks less than the first recipient.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2023/10/31/pig-heart-transplant-to-human-update-patient-dies/71397664007/?

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World's first eye transplant

Aaron James of Hot Springs, Ark., poses with Dr. Eduardo D. Rodriguez after he underwent surgery for the world's first whole-eye transplant at NYU Langone. Photo: NYU Langone Health via Reuters Surgeons at NYU Langone have performed the first-ever whole-eye transplant, Reuters reports. "The mere fact that we transplanted an eye is a huge step forward, something that for centuries has been thought about, but it's never been performed," said Eduardo Rodriguez, the lead doctor on the transplant team. Details: The patient, Aaron James, is a former power-line worker. An accident with a high-voltage wire destroyed most of his face, including his eye. He also lost an arm. Doctors aren't sure whether James will get his sight back in the new eye, but figuring out the mechanics of a successful eye transplant is a huge step toward figuring out how to restore sight.

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First person to receive a genetically modified pig kidney transplant dies nearly 2 months later

BOSTON (AP) — The first recipient of a genetically modified pig kidney transplant has died nearly two months after he underwent the procedure, his family and the hospital that performed the surgery said Saturday.

https://apnews.com/article/pig-kidney-transplant-recipient-dies-d6cf10ac76a4bcde1b3021f45b9695b4?

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These pigs have been raised to grow kidneys and hearts for humans Some of the world's cleanest pigs are being raised in the Virginia mountains to supply kidneys and hearts for animal-to-human organ transplants. Revivicor is one of several companies genetically engineering pigs so their organs are more humanlike and less likely to be rejected. Read more.

Why this matters: Thousands of Americans each year die waiting for a transplant, and many experts acknowledge there never will be enough human donors to meet the need. Animals offer the tantalizing promise of a ready-made supply.   Revivicor parent company United Therapeutics is preparing for clinical trials of those organs, from pigs raised in a first-of-its-kind facility with even more safeguards against any germs that might pose a risk to people.   It will take years of clinical trials to prove whether pig-to-human organ transplants, or xenotransplantation, really could work. But if it succeeds, United Therapeutics’ plan is for even larger facilities, capable of producing up to 2,000 organs a year, in several places around the country.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Pig transplant research yields a surprise: Bacon safe for some people allergic to red meat   How a family’s choice to donate a body for pig kidney research could help change transplants

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Donating a kidney is even safer than previously thought People who volunteer to donate a kidney face an even lower risk of death from the operation than doctors have long thought, researchers reported Wednesday. Read more.

Why this matters: The study tracked 30 years of living kidney donation and found that by 2022, fewer than 1 of every 10,000 donors died within three months of the surgery. Transplant centers have been using older data when counseling donors about potential surgical complications – citing a risk of 3 deaths per 10,000 living donors.   Newer surgical techniques are the key reason, said Dr. Dorry Segev, a transplant surgeon at NYU Langone Health. He often finds transplant recipients more worried about potential risks to their donors than the would-be donors themselves.   Thousands of people die each year waiting for an organ transplant. With nearly 90,000 people on the U.S. list for a kidney transplant, finding a living donor not only shortens the yearslong wait – those organs also tend to survive longer than ones from deceased donors.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Wasn’t polio wiped out? Why it is still a problem in some countries   EEE, West Nile, malaria: Know the difference between these mosquito-borne diseases   What is sloth fever? Here's what to know about Oropouche virus

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Changing — and saving — 3,000 lives

William Goggins (center) stands with colleagues. Photo: IU Health There's no record book for transplant surgeons. If there were, William Goggins would be listed among the greats. Goggins, the surgical director of the Indiana University Health kidney transplant program, is one of the most prolific transplant surgeons in the country, recently completing his 3,000th transplant, Axios Indianapolis' Arika Herron writes. That's a milestone that's more often celebrated by an entire transplant center (or region of the world) than a single surgeon. Zoom out: More than 100,000 people are currently waiting for a donor organ — nearly 90% of them for a kidney. It's estimated that 17 people die every day waiting for an organ. "It just makes you think about how many people are suffering from kidney disease," Goggins said, reflecting on the milestone. "There's such a need for organ donation." Kidneys are the most needed organ, and they're also one of the few that can be given by a live donor. ? By the numbers: Goggins performed his first transplant at IU Health in July 2003 and his 3,000th earlier this month. He averages around 150 transplants a year, sometimes doing two or three surgeries in a single day. His youngest patient was 20 months. His oldest was 83. More than 20 years into his career, Goggins told Axios he doesn't get bored. "Every situation is different," he said. "The cases are different. Everybody's situation is unique. And I just enjoy taking care of people, getting to know them and being able to help them." He especially loves taking on patients who present with challenges or may have been turned down by other surgeons or centers. ? Case in point: Joy Araujo. Diagnosed with kidney disease at age 10, she received her first transplant in 2005 but dealt with chronic rejection. The earlier transplant, a recent blood transfusion and other complications made her a difficult match but, in 2017, she got a call that Goggins had a kidney for her. "To be honest, I did not think I was getting that kidney until I woke up out of surgery and asked, 'Is it in?' and they told me yes," said Araujo, now 36. Before that second transplant, she was on disability and dependent on regular dialysis. Since then, she has finished her bachelor's degree and a graduate program. Today she works for the National Kidney Foundation of Indiana, helping other kidney patients. ? What's next: More transplants. "He'll totally go for 4,000," said Laurie Goggins, his wife. "He loves what he does so much."

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People opt out of organ donation programs after reports of a man mistakenly declared dead

WASHINGTON (AP) — Transplant experts are seeing a spike in people revoking organ donor registrations, their confidence shaken by reports that organs were nearly retrieved from a Kentucky man mistakenly declared dead.

https://apnews.com/article/organ-donor-transplant-kentucky-8f42ad402445a91e981327abb009906c?

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Patients tired of waiting years for transplants line up for pig organs The calls and emails started coming into NYU Langone Health and Massachusetts General Hospital soon after doctors began experimenting with pig organs in humans. People worried they’ll never get a scarce human transplant asked: When could we get a pig kidney? Now two U.S. companies aim to begin the world’s first clinical trials of xenotransplantation in 2025 – using pig kidneys or hearts to try to save human lives. Read more.

Why this matters: United Therapeutics and eGenesis aim to begin the world's first formal studies of pig-to-human transplants in 2025. So far emergency transplants haven't yielded survival past two months — although a woman transplanted last month so far is faring well. But some patients are eager to volunteer anyway.   FDA rules require that pig organs be extensively tested in monkeys or baboons before humans. And while researchers have extended those primates’ survival to a year, sometimes longer, they were desperate for experience with people. Patients given pig organs so far have been “compassionate use” transplants, experiments that FDA allows in select emergency cases for people out of other options.   Scientists have tried animal-to-human transplants for years without success but now they can edit pig genes, trying to bridge the species gap enough to keep the human immune system from immediately attacking the foreign tissue. Still, nobody knows the best gene combination.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ A transplanted pig kidney has freed her from eight years of dialysis   US deaths are down and life expectancy is up, but improvements are slowing   Most US teens are abstaining from drinking, smoking and marijuana, survey says

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The only person in the world with a functioning pig organ is thriving after a record 2 months

An Alabama woman passed a major milestone Saturday to become the longest living recipient of a pig organ transplant – healthy and full of energy with her new kidney for 61 days and counting.

https://apnews.com/article/pig-kidney-transplant-xenotransplant-nyu-alabama-021afcc9697a0a490c0d0726482515b4?

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Liver Transplantation

What Is a Liver Transplant?

A liver transplant is a surgical procedure that replaces someone’s diseased liver with all or part of a healthy one from another person, who’s called a donor.

https://www.webmd.com/hepatitis/digestive-diseases-liver-transplantation?

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Pig Lung Transplant

Chinese scientists have successfully transplanted a pig lung into a human being for the first time, with the organ partially functioning before it was removed.    Researchers used CRISPR technology (see 101) to make six gene edits to the left lung of a pig whose organs are roughly human-sized. They then transferred the lung into a brain-dead 39-year-old man. At first, the lung succeeded in delivering oxygen to his blood and removing carbon dioxide. Within 24 hours, however, there were signs of damage, and indications that the body was rejecting the organ on days three and nine. Scientists ended the experiment following fluid buildup. The patient was removed from life support per his family's wishes.   Researchers believe further experimentation could help improve retention of the lung, since even human-to-human lung transplants often fail sooner, within hours. Researchers hope pig-to-human transplants will help eliminate long wait times for organs, including lungs, kidneys, hearts, and livers.

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Artificial Lungs Prevail

A man survived 48 hours without lungs using an artificial system until he was well enough to receive a double transplant. The landmark procedure took place nearly three years ago, with the patient since developing good function with his donated lungs. In 2023, the 33-year-old developed flu, pneumonia, and acute respiratory distress syndrome. In severe cases, ARDS is treated with life support to give patients time to fight infection. In this case, however, the patient’s heart stopped, his lungs were melting, and his kidneys had begun to fail. Surgeons at Northwestern Memorial Hospital decided to remove both lungs and use a four-component “total artificial lung” system to drain, filter, and return oxygenated blood to the patient’s heart at a responsive flow rate. Dr. Ankit Bharat, who designed the system, hopes it can be used in similar cases of severe ARDS, which impacts a portion of the roughly 190,000 US cases per year.