Rick Slayman, the man who happens to be the world’s first living recipient of a genetically edited pig kidney transplant, has been discharged from the hospital.
CNN reports that Slayman was
discharged on Wednesday, two weeks after his operation, according to a
statement by Massachusetts General Hospital.
“He is recovering well and will
continue to recuperate at home with his family,” the hospital wrote on X.
Slayman was quoted in the
statement issued by the hospital saying: “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. Now, it’s a reality and one of the happiest
moments of my life.”
Recall that Slayman, a
62-year-old manager with the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, had
previously said his doctors suggested that he try a pig kidney when he was
diagnosed with end-stage kidney disease last year.
His doctors stated last month
that they thought Slayman’s new kidney could last years but also acknowledged
that there are many unknowns in animal-to-human transplants.
Slayman’s surgery is the third
such xenotransplant of a pig organ into a living human.
The first two transplants were
hearts transplanted into living patients who had run out of other transplant
options.
The organs were transplanted
under special rules that permit compassionate use of experimental therapies for
patients in especially dire situations. However, both patients died weeks after
receiving their organs.
Slayman said he was grateful
for the response to his surgery, especially from other patients who are waiting
for a kidney transplant.
“Today marks a new beginning
not just for me, but for them, as well,” Slayman said.
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