Who is David Bennett? Baltimore man becomes FIRST person to get pig's heart
A 57-year-old man has become the first person in the world to get a heart transplant from a genetically-modified pig. Three days after the experimental seven-hour procedure in Baltimore, David Bannett is doing well. It is unclear what Bennett's long-term chances of survival are. "It was either die or do this transplant," Mr Bennett had said before the surgery. "I know it's a shot in the dark, but it's my last choice."
The US medical regulator gave doctors at the University of Maryland Medical Center a special dispensation to carry out the procedure. Bennett had been deemed ineligible for a human transplant. The transplant in question was carried out after years of research. Bennett was bedridden for six weeks leading up to the surgery. He was diagnosed with terminal heart disease.
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"This organ transplant demonstrated for the first time that a genetically-modified animal heart can function like a human heart without immediate rejection by the body. The patient, David Bennett, a Maryland resident, is being carefully monitored over the next days and weeks to determine whether the transplant provides lifesaving benefits. He had been deemed ineligible for a conventional heart transplant at UMMC as well as at several other leading transplant centers that reviewed his medical records," the University of Maryland School of Medicine said in a release.
Back in October 2021, surgeons in New York said that they had transplanted a pig's kidney into a person, but the person was brain dead with no hope of getting better. Bennett, however, hopes to get on with his life.
“This was a breakthrough surgery and brings us one step closer to solving the organ shortage crisis. There are simply not enough donor human hearts available to meet the long list of potential recipients,” said Bartley P Griffith, MD, who surgically transplanted the pig heart into the patient.
"Organs from genetically modified pigs have been the focus of much of the research in xenotransplantation, in part because of physiologic similarities between pigs, human, and nonhuman primates. UMSOM received a $15.7 million sponsored research grant to evaluate Revivicor genetically-modified pig UHearts™ in baboon studies," the University of Maryland School of Medicine said.
"Three genes—responsible for rapid antibody-mediated rejection of pig organs by humans—were “knocked out” in the donor pig. Six human genes responsible for immune acceptance of the pig heart were inserted into the genome. Lastly, one additional gene in the pig was knocked out to prevent excessive growth of the pig heart tissue, which totaled 10 unique gene edits made in the donor pig," it added.