Pig Kidney Xenotransplant Successfully Bridges Patient with End-Stage Kidney Disease to Human Transplant
- On Thursday, a patient at Massachusetts General Hospital reached a record-setting 285 days living with a genetically edited pig kidney without needing dialysis. Cambridge-based biotech company eGenesis confirmed the organ, modified using Crispr gene editing, remains fully functional.
- Dr. Leonardo Riella, medical director for kidney transplantation at Mass General Brigham, views xenotransplantation as a temporary "bridge" to help patients avoid dialysis. The procedure addresses a critical shortage: more than 95,000 Americans currently wait for a human kidney.
- Tim Andrews, a 66-year-old from New Hampshire, previously held the record at 271 days with a pig kidney. Andrews called the transplant a "miracle" that gave him "hope," though he later needed dialysis before receiving a human donor organ.
- A study published in The Lancet identified that Andrews' pig kidney failed due to thrombotic microangiopathy—tiny blood clots in the organ. Doctors are adjusting immunosuppressant medications and refining protocols based on these findings to improve outcomes for future recipients.
- The FDA has authorized eGenesis to conduct formal trials in up to 33 patients with kidney failure beginning in 2027. Researchers aim to establish pig-to-human transplantation as a long-term destination therapy, not merely a temporary bridge.
76 Articles
76 Articles
A pig kidney was transplanted into the body of a 67-year-old American man and worked for more than nine months.
The patient was able to spend 271 days without dialysis, which represents the longest survival without that treatment after a pig xenotherplantHow much it costs to have a heart transplant or to care for newborn babies: “I know I couldn’t have dealt with it” A 66-year-old man with end-stage renal failure has survived for nine months with a genetically modified pig kidney, and without dialysis, until he finally received a human organ. A study, pub…
"The shortage of organs is the biggest crisis we currently face in the field of transplants"
The organ, which was genetically modified to be compatible with the immune system, was transplanted to it in January 2025 and spent a year until it was able to access a human
For the first time in the world, a man has managed to live nine months without dialysis, thanks to the transplant of a genetically modified pig kidney. Tim Andrews suffered from severe end-stage kidney disease, which had been caused by type 2 diabetes. The odds of receiving a human kidney within five years were just 9%, while the risk of dying or being removed from the waiting list exceeded 40%. Surgeons in the US successfully transplanted Andr…
Pig kidneys offer new hope that animal organs can be used for humans.
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