Pig kidney works a record 2 months in donated body, raising hope for animal-human transplants

NEW YORK (AP) — For a history-making two months, a pig’s kidney worked normally inside a brain-dead man.

And while the dramatic experiment ended this week, it’s raising hope for eventually testing pig kidneys in living patients. Surgeons at NYU Langone Health removed the pig kidney and returned the donated body to his family for cremation. The genetically modified kidney worked properly the first month before showing subtle signs that rejection was forming. But doctors say the kidney’s function bounced back with simple medication changes.

The lessons could help as regulators decide whether to allow clinical trials of pig organs.

PHOTO INFO: Relatives of Maurice “Mo” Miller, Mary Miller-Duffy, his sister, right, and her wife, Sue Duffy, stand with his body at NYU Langone Health in New York on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023. “I’m so proud of you,” Miller-Duffy said in a tearful farewell. For a history-making 61 days and despite a brief rejection blip, a pig’s kidney worked normally inside his brain-dead body. (AP Photo/Shelby Lum)

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