Pig-to-human liver: Chinese doctors report that a 71-year-old man lived with a gene-edited pig liver for 38 days, the first case of its kind detailed in a peer-reviewed journal. The patient survived 171 days after surgery, and the team says the pig organ acted as a temporary “bridge” while his remaining native liver recovered enough to function on its own.
The man had hepatitis B–related cirrhosis and a large tumour. With no suitable human donor available, surgeons implanted a liver from an 11-month-old cloned pig engineered with multiple gene edits to reduce rejection and infection risks. The graft began working immediately, showing good blood flow and bile production, and early lab results improved.
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Complications emerged around the fourth week, consistent with clotting problems seen in cross-species transplants. Because his own liver was performing adequately, doctors removed the pig liver on day 38. He later died on day 171 from an upper gastrointestinal bleed; his liver was functioning at that time.
Experts say the case is an early but important step. It suggests pig livers could provide short-term support for critically ill patients, buying time for a damaged liver to recover or for a human donor organ to become available.
“Everyone always says, ‘oh, liver is too complicated to transplant, compared to the heart or kidney,’ but after this, in the future, I think people will think differently. I think liver is good if we can get enough human genes in the pig,” said Dr Beicheng Sun, president of the First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University and a co-author of the study, CNN reported.
Challenges remain, including preventing clotting disorders and fine-tuning immune suppression, but the report adds momentum to the idea of xenotransplantation as a bridge therapy.
