A Pig Saved My Life
Caccavale, Elio (2010) A Pig Saved My Life. Antennae: The Journal of Nature in Visual Cultue, 12. pp. 26-30. ISSN 1756-9575
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Creators/Authors: | Caccavale, Elio |
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Abstract: | This article discusses the story of Robert Pennington, the first person in America to receive a Xenotransplantation. In 1997, he faced acute liver failure and no human liver was available. His surgeons proposed hooking him up to a series of pig livers outside his body, which they hoped would filter his blood and keep him alive until a human donor was found. These pigs were transgenic--their organs had been genetically modified to be human compatible. For seven hours over three days, Robert was attached to a pig liver from a transgenic pig developed by biotech company Nextran. Then, a human liver became available. This procedure was done just weeks before such experiments were halted by the FDA because of fears of a pig virus spreading to humans. Pennington was one of a half dozen patients on a Phase 1 clinical trial whose lives were saved using pig livers. |
Official URL: | http://www.antennae.org.uk/back-issues-2010/4583475279 |
Output Type: | Article |
Uncontrolled Keywords: | Science and Society, Bioethics, Science Communication |
Schools and Departments: | School of Innovation and Technology |
Dates: | Date Date Type 5 June 2010 Accepted |
Status: | Published |
Related URLs: | |
Projects: | Utility Pets |
Output ID: | 6513 |
Deposited By: | Elio Caccavale |
Deposited On: | 04 Mar 2019 15:46 |
Last Modified: | 13 Nov 2023 10:00 |