In groundbreaking medical news, the kidney of a pig was just transplanted into a human. It's a medical miracle that could lead to so many incredible developments. What's even more thrilling is that the transplant took place without rejection.
The procedure took place on September 25. Researchers were present at New York University as the kidney from a genetically engineered pig was transplanted into the body of a brain-dead human. According to Reuters, they watched the kidney fully function while inside the human body.
The outlet reported that the woman had signs of kidney dysfunction. She was due to be taken off life support before her family agreed to the experimental procedure.
Lots of caution was taken in the brand new procedure. But the kidney was reportedly attached to blood vessels in the woman's upper leg and kept outside her abdomen for three days. That allowed adequate time for researchers to study what was taking place.
Dr. Robert Montgomery is the surgeon who led the groundbreaking procedure at NYU's Langone Health. He said the procedure was a "transformative moment in organ transplantation."
It is absolutely incredible. Truly, it sounds more like something out of an episode of Grey's Anatomy, but it looks like it could be the future of transplant surgery.
Montgomery has also spoken about what he believes the timeline may be for the same surgery to be done on a human who is still living. He told CBS is could be "in the next year or two."
Animal organs are typically rejected by human bodies. But because the kidney was genetically engineered, the team was able to correct the issues that may cause rejection. "There was complete silence for a few minutes while we were sort of taking in what we were looking at, which was incredible," Montgomery said. "It was a kidney that was immediately functioning."
