The New York Times reported Thursday that a man in Maryland may have died from a virus that targets animals.
The surgeon who performed the animal-to-human surgery on the patient, David Bennett Jr., also reported that the patient's health torpedoed as a result of the surgery.
The procedure was thought to have been a success. The transplant took place in January of 2022, after the Food and Drug Administration granted the university an emergency authorization.
The first genetically modified pig-to-human heart transplant was reported in the MIT Technology Review.
The pig's heart was altered in hopes that it wouldn't be rejected by the patient's immune system. Bennett received the heart from Revivicor.
Insider did not get a reply from Revivicor.
According to The Times, the University of Maryland staff said the animal had been checked for viruses and that the virus that scientists believe could have played a role in Bennett's death was not actively detected before the procedure.
It was either die or do the transplant. Bennett said before the surgery that he wanted to live, according to a UMMC press release.
Bennett had a terminal heart condition and was not eligible for a human heart transplant due to human organ shortages.
The University of Maryland said in a statement that there is no evidence that the virus caused an infections in the patient or any tissues or organs beyond the heart.
The cause of death of pig heart recipient David Bennett, Jr. is still being studied, according to a university spokesman.
The patient had an advanced state of heart failure before the transplant.
The pig was raised in a facility designed to prevent viral infections and the heart was tested just before it was shipped to Maryland.
Bennett was in good health for the first month and a half after the procedure and his heart worked well. According to the MIT Technology Review, a test result came back with the porcine virus after 20 days, but it showed very little signs of spreading.
We started to think that it could have been the actor who set this all off, because the virus that showed up very early at Day 20 could have been the actor.
After 45 days, the patient's health deteriorated and he died on March 8.
He looked really funky at Day 45. He looked sick. He lost his focus. He wouldn't talk to us. He was breathing hard and was warm.
There could be trouble in terms of viral transmissions between animals and humans during the procedure.
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