A pig heart in a human? Before this year, a heart transplant surgery like this seemed unlikely, but over 50 years of innovations have made it possible. Because of the low availability of human organs for transplants, doctors have looked into xenotransplantation as the answer. WIRED spoke with Dr. Brandon Guenthart to understand exactly how this surgery works, and why the future of surgery might look similar.
Director: Maya Dangerfield
Director of Photography: Tim Neff
Editor: Josh Pullar
Expert: Dr. Brandon Guenthart
Line Producer: Joseph Buscemi
Associate Producer: Samantha Vélez
Production Manager: Eric Martinez
Production Coordinator: Fernando Davila
Post Production Supervisor: Alexa Deutsch
Post Production Coordinator: Ian Bryant
Supervising Editor: Doug Larsen
Assistant Editor: Andy Morell
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オルソンフィリップ
October 13, 2022 at 5:47 pm
didnt the guy who got the pig heart die soon after
ShindlersFist
October 13, 2022 at 5:47 pm
Honey boo boo’s pig heart is as sweet as bacon, child.
Action
October 13, 2022 at 5:55 pm
i remember reading a certain book “pig heart boy” when i was 10, and now finally it’s happening for real, i only hope there isn’t as much back lash here as seen in the book
Molly Briscoe
October 13, 2022 at 9:07 pm
Oh my god I just remembered that! That book was a journey 😂
shiroi
October 13, 2022 at 6:03 pm
killing pigs…?
babecat2000
October 13, 2022 at 7:55 pm
They die for food anyway
Davide Aezakmi
October 13, 2022 at 8:03 pm
Yeah we never killed pigs before
Cigars And Whiskey
October 13, 2022 at 8:39 pm
omg don’t be that person, i bet if your heart failed and you knew you had a month left, you would happily get a pig heart, along with eat some bacon,
At least killing a pig to survive is more reasonable than killing a pig just to add more calories to your diet when there are other ways to go about it
Adipose Rex
October 13, 2022 at 6:32 pm
Disgusting entitlement of humans. Use human hearts to treat humans. People never know how to eat and then damage organs like a heart. How dare humans use other species to fix their own mistakes.
Other
very finan
October 13, 2022 at 10:22 pm
Are u vegan
Vinu
October 13, 2022 at 7:06 pm
I would love a gorillas heart
Zeke
October 13, 2022 at 7:14 pm
Btw Dr. Dhaniram Baruah of Assam had done a xenotransplantation (pig heart) in 1997
Soniboy84
October 13, 2022 at 7:37 pm
How cool it’d be just to replace organs with animal ones. What’s next cat eyes, turtleshell skin or horse dcik 🤔🤔
T[A]P Me!! To Have [S]EX With Me
October 13, 2022 at 7:49 pm
do we know exactly why this first patient died? like what happened to the heart that got rejected
Rex Galilae
October 13, 2022 at 8:06 pm
3:44
Sidenote here. Based on a court ruling, the credit for the inventor of CRISPR/CAS9 has to go to Broad’s Feng Zhang.
Don John
October 13, 2022 at 8:45 pm
They done did an engine swap on a human being.
hiccup haddock
October 14, 2022 at 12:35 am
V8 to straight 4
😂
Lucas Jones
October 13, 2022 at 9:54 pm
So if I ate this person’s heart… would that be cannibalism?
YeahRIght
October 13, 2022 at 10:02 pm
I say no cannibal because it’s a pig, so that is no different than a pork roast BBQ. But I do say yes to vampire because of the human blood factor
Lucas Jones
October 13, 2022 at 10:11 pm
@YeahRIght I didnt think of that but I dont think there’s laws against vampirism (maybe so in Romania).
YeahRIght
October 13, 2022 at 9:57 pm
I look forward to watching this one. Pig heart transplant breakthrough is an epic topic.
Catherine Pearson
October 13, 2022 at 10:02 pm
When I saw the title of this, I *instantly* thought of the South Park episode “Raising the Bar”, in which the Character of the Day gets a pig’s heart transplanted into her.
Aiden Rudy
October 13, 2022 at 11:22 pm
I thought they’ve been doing this on cops for years
Ziabatsu
October 13, 2022 at 11:32 pm
Too bad some of the people getting these hearts are super-rich elitists who molest kids on tropical islands.
punkypine
October 14, 2022 at 12:27 am
Sad.
twistedyogert
October 14, 2022 at 12:37 am
If heard about replacing bad valves with good pig valves but an entire heart seems crazy. This is some Frankenstein stuff.
the potato of heaven
October 14, 2022 at 1:13 am
is there any way we can clone a human heart and modify it be more compatible with more ppl?
mgonzalez.88
October 14, 2022 at 1:17 am
Kramer: “I’m talking about a pigman!!”
Reyna V
October 14, 2022 at 3:15 am
me: *sees the word graphic* oooo count me in
me when something graphic is shown: *weak to the knees and about to puke*
Gameplay Tube
October 14, 2022 at 3:19 am
Ghost Heart vs Pigs Heart which Better?
Sushan Acharya
October 14, 2022 at 3:37 am
Hey…can you make a video on explaining “Time” on 5 levels, or a vid that will change people’s perception on “Time”.
Rita 25 y.o - check my vidéó
October 14, 2022 at 4:03 am
I heard about this. It’s truly astounding how far we’ve come
John
October 14, 2022 at 4:10 am
I assumed at some point we would have this, with cardiac health issues being in the top 3 cause of deaths in the US.
Maria Hotgirl
October 14, 2022 at 5:32 am
I heard about this. It’s truly astounding how far we’ve come
Rita 25 y.o - check my vidéó
October 14, 2022 at 6:08 am
do we know exactly why this first patient died? like what happened to the heart that got rejected
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October 14, 2022 at 10:30 am
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October 14, 2022 at 10:30 am
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Tan Apek
October 14, 2022 at 6:09 am
Let’s hope those who chose to be vegan because they think killing animals for consumption are cruel will not need a heart transplant
linguini
October 14, 2022 at 6:11 am
you just know there’s gonna be some weird social bullying to this. some kid calling another kid a pig or a mudblood cos of their funky heart. cool nonetheless
WhatsApp me ±①③⓪①②⓪②④⑤⑦⑧
October 15, 2022 at 3:01 am
Reach out to me…m
Astronaut Ninja
October 14, 2022 at 6:34 am
It will reject it as soon as they eat bacon.
M i Α vℓσg gσ тσ му ¢haηηєℓ!
October 14, 2022 at 6:44 am
I heard about this. It’s truly astounding how far we’ve come
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October 14, 2022 at 10:24 am
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October 14, 2022 at 10:24 am
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matekochkoch
October 14, 2022 at 8:19 am
But is it Halal?
Der Headbanger
October 14, 2022 at 9:18 am
Now I’m waiting for scientists to discover some benefits in the DNA of bears, so they will accidentally create ManBearPig!
Spectral Denouement
October 14, 2022 at 9:56 am
Humanised pig!!! WTF people. What new horror are we putting living beings through now? Human pig hybrid what an horrific life.
(Camille)_ vℓσg gσ тσ му ¢haηηєℓ!
October 14, 2022 at 10:29 am
i remember reading a certain book “pig heart boy” when i was 10, and now finally it’s happening for real, i only hope there isn’t as much back lash here as seen in the book
Victoria 💋𝔽**СК МЕ - СНЕℂ𝕂 𝕄𝕐 Рℝ𝟘𝔽𝕀𝕃Е💛
October 14, 2022 at 2:14 pm
this is so important for the future of transplants. the access to available hearts are so low.
Touch. Me. I Will Turn You
October 14, 2022 at 3:33 pm
do we know exactly why this first patient died? like what happened to the heart that got rejected
Brandi Minor
October 14, 2022 at 4:14 pm
Can I get a heart and a set of lungs?
WhatsApp me ±①③⓪①②⓪②④⑤⑦⑧
October 15, 2022 at 2:59 am
Reach out to me..
Don't read profile photo
October 14, 2022 at 5:27 pm
i remember reading a certain book “pig heart boy” when i was 10, and now finally it’s happening for real, i only hope there isn’t as much back lash here as seen in the book
WhatsApp me ±①③⓪①②⓪②④⑤⑦⑧
October 15, 2022 at 2:59 am
Reach out to me…
Maryam H
October 14, 2022 at 5:36 pm
are all the comments just bots?
Touch. Me. I Will Turn You ONN
October 14, 2022 at 8:37 pm
i remember reading a certain book “pig heart boy” when i was 10, and now finally it’s happening for real, i only hope there isn’t as much back lash here as seen in the book
Jonna 🔞 T[A]P ON [M][Y] PlcTuRE
October 14, 2022 at 10:04 pm
i remember reading a certain book “pig heart boy” when i was 10, and now finally it’s happening for real, i only hope there isn’t as much back lash here as seen in the book
Kelli 💖 𝐹**СК МЕ - СНЕ𝒞𝒦 𝑀𝒴 Р𝑅𝟢𝐹𝐼𝐿Е
October 15, 2022 at 12:56 am
this is so important for the future of transplants. the access to available hearts are so low.
WhatsApp me ±①③⓪①②⓪②④⑤⑦⑧
October 15, 2022 at 2:59 am
Reach out to me…..
Janice 𝔽**СК МЕ - СНЕℂ𝕂 𝕄𝕐 Рℝ𝟘𝔽𝕀𝕃Е💛
October 15, 2022 at 2:13 am
this is so important for the future of transplants. the access to available hearts are so low.
Karen Carter
October 15, 2022 at 2:33 am
There isn’t an evolutionary bridge to cross. We were created separately.
WhatsApp me ±①③⓪①②⓪②④⑤⑦⑧
October 15, 2022 at 2:58 am
Reach out to me….
Chloe Codner
October 15, 2022 at 3:39 am
my friend Moe does this good job Moe
Invox
October 15, 2022 at 8:41 am
Couples ina few years:
– You’re a pig!
– Yes. Yes I am.
😅
Matthew Dalbey
October 15, 2022 at 10:12 pm
I wonder what Jewish & People of the Muslim faith think about this? I mean, you’re not “eating” pork, just beating as a result of pork…
Fredrick Hinojosa
October 16, 2022 at 4:30 am
They put a pigs heart into a human body in the 60’s
Kyra Lavoie
October 16, 2022 at 8:32 pm
I thought this was more common actually, pig and cow hearts being used in human surgery.
💖Sailor Moon💖
October 16, 2022 at 11:43 pm
this is so important for the future of transplants. the access to available hearts are so low.
Dana🍆𝗙**𝗖𝗞 Me! Check 𝗠𝘆 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶le💋
October 17, 2022 at 2:20 am
I heard about this. It’s truly astounding how far we’ve come
Andrew Pineda Mayen
October 20, 2022 at 2:06 pm
Are they gonna grow pig tails and snouts now?
Jr Garcia
October 21, 2022 at 4:50 pm
Is this religiously correct?
Branislav Osif
October 22, 2022 at 9:50 pm
Amazing
Minecraft
October 29, 2022 at 4:24 pm
I will never be a surgeon cuz I’m sensitive to blood and human flesh…
dande tande
October 30, 2022 at 8:33 pm
Out of all the animals that are out there. Why TF they chosee a pig, one of the dirtiest animal in the world 🤮
LoWings
November 2, 2022 at 2:47 pm
Probably something to do with size. Early xenotransplantation experiments included chimpanzee’s and baboon hearts.
Chantelle Modisane
October 31, 2022 at 12:55 am
I’d rather die
M. Meinen
November 1, 2022 at 12:12 pm
Will bacteria/viruses affect pig/human transplants differently? Like evolution wise or?