Thursday, April 4, 2024 - The recipient of the world's first pig kidney transplant is out of the hospital after a medical milestone.
Richard Slayman, a 62-year-old Weymouth man,
received the world's first genetically edited pig kidney transplant. He's now
recovering at home with his family.
Slayman was discharged from Massachusetts
General Hospital about two weeks after the successful transplant.
"This moment — leaving the hospital
today with one of the cleanest bills of health I've had in a long time — is one
I wished would come for many years," Slayman said in a statement.
"Now, it's a reality and one of the happiest moments of my
life."
"It was such a joyful day for all of
us," Dr. Leonardo Riella, the hospital's medical director for kidney
transplantation, told NBC10 Boston.
He says this gives hope to thousands of
patients in need.
"Unfortunately, there are not enough
kidneys out there," he said. "This would be a huge hope for them to
receive a kidney in a timely manner before they get too sick to actually get a
kidney transplant — which is the best treatment for kidney disease."
Slayman had a kidney transplant in 2018 but
had to go back on dialysis last year when it showed signs of failure.
"We were confident that we may create
a new opportunity for patients," Dr Riella said. "It could be seen as
a bridge, meaning that this transplant will get them and keep them healthy
until they get a human kidney, or even, in the future, that this will be a
permanent solution."
One of the transplant surgeons on the team
believes the pig kidney will work for at least two years.
Riella says doctors will follow up with
Slayman twice a week with blood tests to monitor his new kidney.
"This just gives us so much joy,
because ultimately, this is what we wanted to do, is give him back the life
that he used to have and provide him with a quality of life that he
deserves," Riella said.
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