May 12, 2025

Amy Truque 

11th Grade

The Young Women's Leadership School of Queens  

Introduction

Xenotransplantation is the transplanting, implanting, and infusing of cells, tissues, or organs from a nonhuman source into a human. Doctors led to the use of animal transplants due to the high demand for specific organs. As of April 23rd, 2025, 3:46 pm EDT, there are 125 candidates on the waiting list needing an organ. Pigs are the most commonly used animals in xenotransplantation due to their easy genetic modification compared to other animals and their close physiological similarities. This innovative approach in medicine offers a solution for the ongoing shortage of human organ transplantation. While it does raise questions regarding the ethical and medical challenges, continued research and regulation may help ensure xenotransplantation as a safe and reliable option for saving lives. 

Cases

Lawrence Faucette was a 58-year-old man who had been struggling with a terminal heart disease and heart failure. For him to continue living, the need for a heart transplant was critical. The University of Maryland Medical Center genetically modified a pig so its body’s immune system wouldn’t reject the external source. Lawrence Facucettte received the heart transplant on September 20, 2023. For the first month with the transplant, Faucette was flourishing. He started to show signs of his body rejecting the heart. On October 30th, 2023, he passed. The transplant helped him prolong his life a bit more and spend more time with loved ones.

Similarly, Tim Andrew from New Hampshire has received kidney therapy for 2 years. The treatment didn’t have much of a result, and various other health conditions, such as a heart attack that he had in July 2023, endangered his life. Tim Andrews’ blood type was O; therefore, he had to wait about 5-10 years for a transplant. He was discharged from the hospital on February 1, 2025, a week after receiving the new liver. “It’s like a new engine — suddenly I had an energy machine pouring into me,” Andrews told The Times. Andrew is now active and no longer depends on his wheelchair to travel, improving his living conditions.

Future Possibilities 

Xenotransplantation can save many people's lives. Every 80 minutes, someone who was on the organ waiting list passes away from their illness. Using animals similar to humans is an advantage over human organs since, unlike humans, you can genetically modify the animal organs. The future and continuation of xenotransplantation are critical to ensuring people a longer life and combating the shortage of organs. Furthermore, as research paves the way for new possibilities, there is hope that xenotransplantation becomes a standard medicine practice, offering a new path for patients struggling with the burden of these waiting lists. For example, scientists are already conducting studies, such as genetically engineering pigs to remove harmful genes and add human-compatible genes, which makes organ transplantation safer. 

Conclusion

As scientists work to overcome challenges such as immune rejection and disease transmission, possibilities for safe animal-to-human transplants grow significantly more potent. With the right innovation and ethical consideration, xenotransplantation can become a ground-breaking hope in modern medicine, as it can save thousands of lives and reduce the long organ transplant waitlist. With continued research and advancements, it could offer many patients a second chance at life.