Patient from the US: UU receives the first pig heart transplant

  Patient from the US: UU receives the first pig heart transplant

An American has become the first person in the world to receive a heart transplant from a genetically modified pig.

Doctors say the patient, known as David Bennett, is doing well three days after the seven-hour trial procedure in Baltimore.

The transplant is Bennett's last hope of saving his life, though it's unclear what his chances of long-term survival are.

Either he's dying or he has this transplant," Bennett, 57, said the day before the surgery.

"I know it's a hit in the dark, but it's my last option," he added.

For his part, Bennett hopes the transplant will allow him to move on with his life. He was bedridden for six weeks before the surgery, hooked up to a machine that helped him survive after he was diagnosed with end-stage heart disease.

"I hope I can get out of bed after I recover," he said last Thursday.

At the moment, we don't know what will happen next. According to AFP, the pig used for the transplant was genetically engineered to destroy the gene that produces the sugar that triggers the immune response in humans.