The intervention, carried out on January 7, had raised great hopes: such xenografts could potentially allow to remedy the shortage of organ gifts.
Le Monde with AFP
He had been the first patient in the world to receive a graft of a genetically modified pork heart. David Bennett, 57, died two months after his operation, announced, Wednesday, the hospital where he was cared for.
The man died Tuesday: his condition had “started deteriorating several days ago,” said the University of Maryland hospital in a statement. “When it became clear that it would not be recovered, palliative care was given to him.” The operation, carried out on January 7, had raised great hopes, because such xenografts (of an animal to a pet human) could potentially make it possible to remedy the shortage of organ donations.
The experience considered as a success by researchers
“The heart worked very well for several weeks, without any sign of rejection,” the hospital said. After the operation, “the patient was able to spend time with his family and participate in physiotherapy activities to help him resume”
The experience can thus be considered a success, according to the researchers. “We got large values information and learned that a genetically modified pork core can work properly inside a human body when the immune system is adequately bridged,” said Muhammad Mohiuddin, Scientific Director of the Program of xenotransplantations of this hospital. “We remain optimistic and plan to continue our work at future clinical trials.”
Pigs are ideal donors
The pork originated by the grafted heart had been genetically modified in order to avoid immediate rejection. A new experimental drug had also been used, in addition to usual anti-antijet drugs, to inhibit the immune system. In transplants, the danger is indeed that the latter detects the organ as a foreign body and starts attacking it.