Record-Breaking Pig Kidney Transplant Raises Hope for Animal-Human Transplants

Surgeons at NYU Langone Health have successfully kept a genetically modified pig kidney functioning inside a deceased human body for a record-breaking two months. This experiment in xenotransplantation, the transplantation of animal organs into humans, aims to address the critical shortage of organs for transplantation. The researchers learned valuable lessons about immune response and organ function, which they plan to share with the FDA in hopes of eventually testing pig kidneys in living patients. While the experiment provides promising results, further research is needed to determine the viability of pig organs in living recipients.