The first person to receive a pig heart transplant died two months after the historic procedure in the United States, the hospital that performed the surgery said on Wednesday.
David Bennett, 57, who died on March 8, received his transplant on January 7, the University of Maryland, located in the eastern US state of the same name, said in a statement.
“His condition began to deteriorate several days ago,” the note reads.
The unprecedented transplant generated expectations that the use of organs from other species would be the solution in the future to solve the chronic shortage of human organs for donation.
In turn, the team responsible for the surgery remains optimistic about the success of this procedure in the future. “After it became clear that he would not recover, he received compassionate palliative care. He was able to communicate with his family during his final hours,” the statement reads.
After the surgery, the transplanted heart worked very well for a few weeks, with no signs of rejection, the university said.
Bennett spent time with his family, had physical therapy sessions, watched the Super Bowl — the NFL football league final — and always talked about his desire to come home to see his dog Lucky.
“He proved to be a brave and noble patient who fought to the end. We express our deepest condolences to the family,” commented Bartley Griffith, the surgeon who conducted the procedure.
In October 2021, Bennett was admitted to the University of Maryland hospital. He was lying on a bed and hooked up to an emergency life support machine. He was deemed ineligible for a human transplant, which happens when the recipient has underlying health issues.
“We have learned invaluable lessons about how the genetically modified pig heart can function well inside the human body while the immune system behaves properly,” said Muhammad Mohiuddin, director of the university’s heart xenotransplantation program.
“We remain optimistic and plan to continue our work in future clinical trials,” he said.
US media outlets revealed that Bennett had been convicted of stabbing a man multiple times in 1988, which left the victim paralyzed before he died in 2005.
Medical ethicists, on the other hand, maintain that a person’s criminal record should not influence his or her future health care.
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