SAD: 1st Man To Receive Pig Heart Transplant Is Dead | READ DETAILS
57 year old David Bennett, the first man to successfully receive a pig heart transplant, has died after two months.
US surgeons in January, conducted the transplant on Bennet who had a terminal heart disease at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM). READ HERE
He however died in Tuesday, March 8, 2022 according to a statement by the UMSOM.
Bennett’s condition was said to have deteriorated in recent days and after it became clear that he would not recover, he was given compassionate palliative care and an opportunity to speak with his family.
Reacting to the patient’s demise, Bartley Griffith, Director of the Cardiac Transplant Programme at UMSOM, said;
“We are devastated by the loss of Mr. Bennett. He proved to be a brave and noble patient who fought all the way to the end. We extend our sincerest condolences to his family”.
“As with any first-in-the-world transplant surgery, this one led to valuable insights that will hopefully inform transplant surgeons to improve outcomes and potentially provide lifesaving benefits to future patients.”
On his part, Muhammad Mohiuddin, professor of surgery at UMSOM who established the cardiac xenotransplantation programme with Griffith, stated;
“We are grateful to Mr. Bennett for his unique and historic role in helping to contribute to a vast array of knowledge to the field of xenotransplantation”.
“We have gained invaluable insights learning that the genetically modified pig heart can function well within the human body while the immune system is adequately suppressed. We remain optimistic and plan on continuing our work in future clinical trials.”
