Richard “Rick” Slayman, a 62-year-old man who was the first to get a genetically modified pig kidney transplant, has passed away two months after the surgery, according to his family and a statement from Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, where he had the transplant.
As reported by the Washington Post on Sunday, the Boston hospital mentioned in a statement issued late Saturday that “Mass General is greatly saddened by Mr. Rick Slayman's unexpected passing. We do not point to his recent transplant as the cause.
“Slayman will forever be seen as a source of hope to many transplant patients worldwide, and we greatly appreciate his trust and willingness to push the field of xenotransplantation forward.”
Slayman, who had Type 2 diabetes and hypertension, got a human kidney transplant in 2018, but it started failing five years later.
Doctors gained approval from the Food and Drug Administration, which allowed the surgery under its “compassionate use” rules, to attempt the xenotransplant, the process of implanting organs from one species into another.
The authorization is given in situations where a patient has a “serious or immediately life-threatening disease or condition” and there are no other treatments, as per the FDA.
The four-hour procedure involved 69 genetic modifications to the pig’s kidney to lessen the risk of rejection.
In a statement on Mass General’s website, his family mentioned that while they were “deeply saddened about the sudden passing of our beloved Rick,” they took “great comfort knowing he inspired so many.”
The family mentioned they were “consoled by the hope he gave to patients desperately waiting for a transplant”.
Slayman’s family also thanked the doctors “who truly did everything they could to help give Rick a second chance. Their considerable efforts in leading the xenotransplant allowed our family seven more weeks with Rick, and the memories made during that time will stay in our minds and hearts.”
“After his transplant, Rick said that one of the reasons he underwent this procedure was to provide hope for the thousands of people who need a transplant to survive,” the family added.
“His legacy will inspire patients, researchers, and health care professionals.”
The transfer of organs from one type of animal to another is a growing area called xenotransplantation.
Pig kidneys had previously been implanted into brain-dead patients, but Slayman was the first living person to get one.
In 2023, genetically modified pig hearts were transplanted into two patients at the University of Maryland, but both lived less than two months.
