The Maryland man who was the first person to receive a heart transplant from a pig has passed away, two months after the groundbreaking operation. The 57-year-old man, David Bennett, died Tuesday at the University of Maryland Medical Center, the hospital that performed the surgery announced Wednesday.
Doctors didn’t reveal Bennett’s exact cause of death, saying only that his condition had worsened several days earlier.
In a statement released by the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Bennett’s son, David Bennett Jr. showed gratitude to the doctors for offering the last-ditch experiment, saying the family hoped it would help further efforts to end the organ shortage.
“We are grateful for every innovative moment, every crazy dream, every sleepless night that went into this historic effort,” David Bennett Jr. said. “We hope this story can be the beginning of hope and not the end.”
For decades, doctors have been trying to one day use animal organs for life-saving transplants. Previous attempts at such transplants have failed in the past largely because patients’ bodies quickly rejected the animal organ.
Bennett was a candidate for this newest attempt because he was ineligible for a human heart transplant, on life support, and out of other options.
At first, Bennett seemed to be doing well after the surgery, and the Maryland hospital would periodically update the public about how Bennett seemed to be slowly recovering. Last month, the hospital released a video in which Bennett could be seen watching the Super Bowl from his hospital bed while working with his physical therapist.
“We are devastated by the loss of Mr. Bennett. He proved to be a brave and noble patient who fought all the way to the end,” Dr. Bartley Griffith, who performed the surgery at the Baltimore hospital, said in a statement.
