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Surgeons transplant pig kidney into a patient

nytimes.com

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Re: Surgeons transplant pig kidney into a patient

#101

Post by jprd »

mikeInAlaska wrote: post #52
candiddevmike wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How many times can you receive a transplant for the same organ? Does scar tissue for at the transplant site?

Speaking for liver transplants, they are a many hour traumatic affair. My daughter lost and received more than her entire blood volume during hers. Initial recovery is extremely immunosuppressed and some of the drugs we had to handle with masks and gloves, and had 4x a day medication schedules. So you couldn't burn through pig livers I believe getting them swapped frequently. My daughter received her liver at age 8 m…

AMAZING - bless you and your family, thank you for sharing your experience!

Re: Surgeons transplant pig kidney into a patient

#102

Post by PlunderBunny »

quesera wrote: post #43

It's impossible for me to see this as anything but an amazing development. But the sentient-pig SF horror genre pretty much writes itself.

I remember reading online a short sci-fi piece where people keep their own generically engineered pigs for spare parts, and the main character develops an affection for the animal (that is smart enough to almost talk). The story ends with him needing a transplant, and sitting in the mud with the pig, contemplating the choice he has before him.

Edit: In a more 'realistic' scenario, capitalism would ensure we were more remote from the ethical consequences of our consumerism.

Re: Surgeons transplant pig kidney into a patient

#103

Post by userbinator »

wiz21c wrote: post #22

I remember this; didn't last long :-( https://www.npr.org/2022/03/09/1085420836/pig-heart-transpla...

I remember that too, and can't believe it's already been a year since that happened. Now I wonder what the next organ to cross the pig-human border will be.

Re: Surgeons transplant pig kidney into a patient

#104

Post by [deleted] »

kerkeslager wrote: post #91
LeifCarrotson wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure, but is a low quality life worse than oblivion? Even if you're not 25 and healthy and wealthy and happy, I think life is still worth living. Plus, if the suffering experienced by this patient helps cause someone else (or many someones else for centuries to come) to have a higher quality of life, one person's suffering can buy a lot of QALYs. Alternatively if as my mother tells me, I'm doomed to an eternity of un…

> Sure, but is a low quality life worse than oblivion? Unequivocally yes. I think you are drastically underestimating how bad a life can get. > Plus, if the suffering experienced by this patient helps cause someone else (or many someones else for centuries to come) to have a higher quality of life, one person's suffering can buy a lot of QALYs. Exactly, that's why I'm arguing that this person's choice is brave.

[deleted]

Re: Surgeons transplant pig kidney into a patient

#105

Post by iancmceachern »

y04nn wrote: post #77

I would like to have more details on the list of genetic modifications needed to make the kidney implantable in an human without being rejected/attacked by the immune system.

It's so interesting.

It was done over the course of decades by the company that made Dolly the cloned sheep all those years ago.

There are a handful, maybe a dozen genetic changes that were needed, but that's not the most interesting part.

Endemic to the general swine population are several retrovirus'. They are communicable, so they had to create an entirely separate breeding population of these pigs, with the genetic modifications, and then raise and otherwise maintain a breeding population that is totally separate from other farms. Something as simple as a feed truck delivery could lead to a compromise. Think about a farm, but total microbiological isolation.

Re: Surgeons transplant pig kidney into a patient

#106

Post by barbazoo »

John23832 wrote: post #35

If successful, this is great. However, I would like to see how long this lasts. I can recall seeing similar stories with either a rejection at the end, or some negative outcome for the patient.

It’d be best if everyone just offered to be an organ donor.

Re: Surgeons transplant pig kidney into a patient

#108

Post by TrinaryWorksToo »

barbazoo wrote: post #107
TrinaryWorksToo wrote: post #74

It's easy to transplant a pigney into a human. The hard part is keeping them alive afterward, especially in the long term. It seems like the event is not far enough in the past to know.

“easy”

comparatively

Re: Surgeons transplant pig kidney into a patient

#109

Post by magicalhippo »

adamredwoods wrote: post #47
John23832 wrote: post #35

If successful, this is great. However, I would like to see how long this lasts. I can recall seeing similar stories with either a rejection at the end, or some negative outcome for the patient.

The hearts lasted weeks, about 2 months. The test primate for the kidney lasted 2 years, which would be impressive.

A close relative required a kidney transplant back in the early 60s when it was still quite new. They told her they expected it to last 2-3 years.

Took over 40 years before the kidney gave up, and she led a quite normal life up until the last couple of years.

Sadly, because she was given only 2-3 years she felt she lived on borrowed time, and never felt comfortable having kids.

Re: Surgeons transplant pig kidney into a patient

#110

Post by chimineycricket »

mikeInAlaska wrote: post #52
candiddevmike wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How many times can you receive a transplant for the same organ? Does scar tissue for at the transplant site?

Speaking for liver transplants, they are a many hour traumatic affair. My daughter lost and received more than her entire blood volume during hers. Initial recovery is extremely immunosuppressed and some of the drugs we had to handle with masks and gloves, and had 4x a day medication schedules. So you couldn't burn through pig livers I believe getting them swapped frequently. My daughter received her liver at age 8 m…

Wow, congrats. Does she still take immunosuppressants? If so do you and your family take extra caution to not bring home any sickness (for example always washing hands or similar). If her body accepted the liver, how long did it take for that to happen? It's very interesting to me, especially if we can figure out how to force the body to learn/accept the transplant with something better than immunosuppressants and not immunosuppressants. Thanks.
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