Two months after the operation, the first patient in the world who received a genetically modified pig heart has died, according to the hospital where he was treated. The University of Maryland Medical Center announced in a statement on Wednesday that 57-year-old David Bennett passed away on Tuesday after his condition "deteriorated in recent days." They added that "when it became clear he would not recover from this condition, he was provided with medical care designated for terminally ill patients," according to AFP. The statement also noted that Bennett, who underwent the surgery on January 7, "was able to communicate with his family in his final hours."
The hospital highlighted that this scientific event showed for the first time that an animal heart could continue to function within a human body without immediate rejection. David Bennett had been deemed ineligible for a human heart transplant.
