A 62-year-old Rick Slayman, the first patient who received the world’s first transplant of a genetically modified pig kidney, has died nearly two months post-operation, Massachusetts General Hospital announced.
Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), United States announced the development on Sunday saying there was no indication his death was as a result of the transplant.
On March 16, surgeons at the hospital transplanted a pig’s kidney into 62-year-old Richard Slayman, a living human recipient, for the first time.
The hospital said a genetically-edited pig kidney was used for the “successful” surgery, which took four hours.
Slayman has been living with type 2 diabetes and hypertension for years.
He was on dialysis for many years before receiving a kidney transplant from a deceased human donor in December 2018.
The kidney began to fail about five years later and Slayman was forced to resume dialysis in May 2023.
The patient was discharged from hospital in April, almost three weeks after the operation.
Slayman’s relatives said his story was an inspiration and said one of the reasons he underwent this procedure was to provide hope for the thousands of people who need a transplant to survive.
“Rick accomplished that goal and his hope and optimism will endure forever,” he said.
“To us, Rick was a kind-hearted man with a quick-witted sense of humour who was fiercely dedicated to his family, friends, and co-workers.”