![A paper clipboard with a kidney model, a stethoscope, and the text ``KIDNEY TRANSPLANT.''](https://static.seekingalpha.com/cdn/s3/uploads/getty_images/1479963484/image_1479963484.jpg?io=getty-c-w750)
![A paper clipboard with a kidney model, a stethoscope, and the text ``KIDNEY TRANSPLANT.''](https://static.seekingalpha.com/cdn/s3/uploads/getty_images/1479963484/image_1479963484.jpg?io=getty-c-w750)
Mohd Izuan/iStock, Getty Images
Updated at 3:22pm EST: Added dialysis provider stock reaction
Massachusetts General Hospital announced Thursday that its surgeons have become the first in the world to successfully transplant a genetically engineered pig kidney into a living human. This is an important milestone in addressing this problem. Global organ shortage.
The patient, 62-year-old Richard „Rick“ Suleiman of Weymouth, Massachusetts, is recovering well and is expected to be discharged from the hospital soon after undergoing a four-hour surgery on Saturday, the Boston-based hospital said. the hospital added.
Suleiman, who had a history of type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, received a kidney transplant from a human donor at the same hospital in 2018. After the patient's previous transplant failed and she was forced to restart her dialysis in 2023, she opted for pig kidney surgery.
Shares of leading dialysis provider DaVita (DVA), Fresenius Medical Care (FMS), and Outset Medical (OM), the manufacturer of the Tablo hemodialysis system, came under pressure following the news.
Cambridge, Massachusetts-based biotech eGenesis has donated pig kidneys that underwent CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing, which removes harmful animal genes and adds human genes to improve the organ's fitness. .
After the surgery, Suleiman immunosuppressive Treatment: Tegopulvert and ravulizumab, provided by Eledon Pharmaceutical (Nasdaq:eldon) and AstraZeneca’s (Nasdaq:AZN) unit, Alexion Pharmaceuticals.
The Massachusetts Secretary of State identified the procedure, carried out as part of an FDA program for experimental treatments called „compassionate use,“ as a potential solution to addressing the growing demand for organs.
It is estimated that more than 100,000 people in the United States are seeking organs for transplant, and 17 patients die every day while waiting for an organ.
The procedure is the latest medical advance in xenotransplantation, which involves transplanting organs and tissues from one species to another. In October 2023, the University of Maryland Medical Center transplanted a genetically engineered pig heart into a 57-year-old heart failure patient.
Revivicor, a division of United Therapeutics (UTHR), its organs and Kiniksa Pharmaceuticals (KNSA) provided Experimental immunosuppressive therapy.