Pig kidney works for a record 271 days inside the body of American patient
A 68-year-old patient successfully lived for 271 days with a transplanted pig kidney, marking a significant milestone in xenotransplantation. This procedure served as a bridge to a successful human kidney transplant, offering potential hope for future organ shortage solutions.
Why it matters
This breakthrough provides critical data for the future of organ transplantation, potentially saving lives for those on long waiting lists.
A New Hampshire man, at death’s door 1 ½ years ago, said Friday he could now have “decades” left after surviving a record 271 days with a transplanted pig kidney — in a procedure that could offer new hope to countless other patients. When Tim Andrews and doctors first started discussing a pig transplant in late 2024, the patient with end-stage kidney failure said he was convinced death was near. But Andrews, 68, wanted to try this procedure, if just for the findings and data it could yield for researchers. “I didn’t think I was going to live through it, to be honest. But I wanted to do it for humanity,” he told NBC News on Friday. “I realized, OK, I’m a dead man. I’m a dead man walking. So I said to myself, ‘What have I done? What have I done with my life?
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