David Bennett, a 57-year-old American who underwent a landmark surgery in January 2022, is dead. The man was the first man to receive a pig heart transplant.
- David Bennett suffered from heart failure and was ineligible for a human heart transplant or heart pump
- Doctors from Baltimore decided to undergo an experimental operation and on January 7, 2022, they transplanted a man with a heart of a genetically modified pig
- Two months after the operation, Bennett, still in the hospital for rehabilitation, died
- More information can be found on the Onet homepage
The patient’s health suddenly deteriorated
The University of Maryland’s Medical Center in Baltimore (USA), where a heart transplant was performed two months ago, informed about the patient’s death. The hospital did not provide the exact cause of the man’s death, however it did note that his condition had deteriorated worsened a few days ago.
«We are devastated by the loss of Mr. Bennett. He turned out to be a brave and noble patient who fought to the end, ”said Dr. Bartley Griffith, who conducted the operation, in a statement.
Previously, an update of the patient’s health status was published from time to time, including that David Bennett is slowly recovering. Even the moment when he watches the Super Bowl while working with a physiotherapist in his hospital room.
«We are grateful for every amazing moment, every crazy dream, every sleepless night that influenced this historic effort. We hope this story may be the beginning of hope, not the end, ”said David Bennett Jr., son of the deceased, in a statement released by the university.
Bennett Jr. He stressed that his father was aware of the risks involved in the operation and that success was not guaranteed.
Further part below the video.
Who was David Benett?
David Bennett was a handyman from Hagerstown, Maryland. The man suffered from heart failure, was confined to a bed and was neither eligible for a human heart transplant, nor for implantation of a pump to support this organ. The innovative transplant was performed due to poor prognosis and the lack of alternatives for further treatment.
- Read also: Heart failure is an epidemic of the XNUMXst century
The Food and Drug Administration had to give consent to the experimental surgery to transplant a pig heart into a patient. The authority argued for its positive decision with the principle of compassion used in emergency situations.
The man with the pig’s heart survived for two months (the transplant took place on January 7, 2022). That’s much longer than Baby Fae (born Stephanie Fae Beauclair), a girl who carried a baboon heart for 21 of her only 33 days. This transplant, performed in 1984, was one of the last milestones in xenotransplantation (organ transplantation from an individual belonging to another species – ed.).
In the United States alone, a record 41 jobs were made last year. transplants, including almost 3,8 thousand. heart transplants. However, as many as 106 are still on the waiting list for a transplant. patients.
Photo Left: Dr. Bartley Griffith and David Bennett after surgery. Right: pig heart transplant surgery into the human body. University of Maryland, Baltimore, January 7, 2022.
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