Patients in China and the US have received pig organ transplants, opening an ethical can of worms

Two milestone surgeries transplanting pig organs into human patients have shone a light on xenotransplantation

But the practice raises ethical concerns, including possible virus transmission, which must be addressed

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Before pig organs can be routinely used in human organ transplant operations, ethical questions must be addressed. Photo: AP

Published: 4:00pm, 30 Mar 2024

The transplant of pig organs into human patients made global headlines last week with two milestone achievements in the field, but ethical considerations like virus transmission may still present a barrier to it becoming common practice.

The first feat involved Chinese doctors transplanting a pig’s liver into a patient who had suffered brain death.

The groundbreaking surgery saw the organ function for 10 days before it was removed based on the family’s wishes. In China, brain death is not considered legal death.

The second milestone transplant took place in the United States, where a pig’s kidney was put into a patient with end-stage kidney failure. The procedure had previously been performed on clinically dead patients.

These surgeries, as well as others in recent years, have demonstrated the life-saving potential of xenotransplantation – the transplantation of organs or tissues from one species into another.

“One of the potential benefits of xenotransplantation is the limitless graft supply that would help a lot of patients with urgent need for transplant,” said Albert Chan Chi-yan, a clinical professor at the University of Hong Kong and director of Queen Mary Hospital’s Liver Transplant Centre.