A Very Brief Look at Xenotransplantation

The medical practice of organ transplantation has grown by leaps and bounds over the last 50 years. Each year the medical profession takes more risk with decisions regarding transplants, how to allocate for organs, and most recently conducting transplants on children with adult organs. “An organ transplantation is a surgical operation where a failing or damaged organ in the human body is removed and replaced with a new one” (Caplan, 2009). Not all organs can be transplanted. The term “organ transplant” typically refers to transplants of solid organs: heart, kidneys, liver, pancreas, and intestines. There are two ways of receiving an organ transplant: from a living human or an organ from a

In December of 1954, the first human organ transplant was performed in the United States between identical twin brothers. In the past sixty years, organ transplantation has become the gold standard in the treatment of organ failure from a number of underlying causes with dramatic improvements to recipients’ health and quality of life (Kaserman, 2007). From the first kidney transplant in 1954 to the late 1980’s, one of the biggest advancements was the use of cadaver organs. Organ rejection was the primary concern from the transplant team who knew that the use of cadaver organs posed higher risks of failure.

Throughout time Organ transplanting has been an important medical procedure that has been present, not only in the United States, but around the globe. It is the process of surgically removing an organ from on patient and then transplanting it into the other. This practice is usually used when a recipient’s own organ fails to function properly or has

     Recently, the low numbers of human donor organs and short term mechanical “organ” replacements have given cause for

These organs would then be transplanted into someone whose had previously failed or is in the process of shutting down.

Xenotransplantation is a controversial medical procedure that has been debated by medical ethicists for many years. Xenotransplantation or Xeno is defined as the short-term transplantation of animal tissues into a human. It has been argued that the procedure is unethical because of the use of animal organs. However, twenty two people die each day waiting for an organ transplant, so we must act soon to save the thousands of lives that are still waiting. Xenotransplantation is a highly debatable procedure and offers a unique solution to the ever growing organ transplant list, making it a viable and worthwhile procedure.

The medical industry had been achieving more in the stage of medical advancements, though they are still in the early phase. Artificial organs have been one of those achievements. Although they have achieved such, artificial organs are not perfect. Most doctors as well as patients would prefer to replace a dying organ with a compatible human organ, rather than with an artificial or animal organ. Yet due to a there being less organs donated than recipients, artificial and animal organs are becoming more common in transplants. Most of this issue is because people are unaware of how organ donation works, the organs that can be donated, how many people are in need, and the advancements that have happened in the field. Organ donation saves hundreds of lives every year, but many lives are recklessly lost due to a shortage of organ donors.

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In the United States, 122,737 patients are on the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) list that are in need of lifesaving organs. With the current UNOS system, nearly 3,300 patients are expiring every year waiting for kidney transplants, let alone the other organs needed (Foundation, 2014). The length of time and money the process takes to procure an organ from a cadaver could be nearly done away with using bioengineered organs rather than procurement. Forms of Bioengineering are done with the use of matrices alone in which the body’s natural regenerative properties correct the issue, or using matrices embedded with undifferentiated cells. With the use of Bioengineering organs of one’s own, stem cell onto matrices could reduce or eliminate the use of immunosuppressant. Bioengineering organs can change the health care by reducing the cost of care, shortening the wait for transplantation, and extending the life of the recipient. Results Many of the patients with end-stage organ failure were going untreated or minimal treatment due to the lack of insurance. In 2010 that changed when President Obama signed the health care reform act, which is expanding coverages and limiting the growth in health care cost while reforming the delivery and insurance system. Prior to the Health Care Reform Act, individuals, that had an illness could not change jobs due the fact of being ineligible for

Due to fewer deaths caused by car crashes and gunshots, Canada lacks in its number of organ donors. Hoping for development in the xenotransplantation is our only hope at this point. Although Canada is encouraged to participate in further research regarding the xenotransplantation, alternatives to this must also be looked into. The alternatives vary from further stem cell research, and ways to increase to organ donors.

As written by the History.com staff, in 1958, Norman Shumway performed the first successful heart transplant on a dog at Stanford University. It wasn’t until December 3, 1967, that the first human heart transplant was completed in Cape Town, South Africa. Lewis Washkansky was dying from chronic heart disease and received a donor heart from Denise Darvall, a twenty-five year old woman who died in a car accident. Christiaan Barnard, a reputable surgeon, performed this cutting-edge procedure. Eighteen days after, Washkansky died of pneumonia due to the susceptibility to illness that the anti-rejection medication opened him up to. Regardless of this, his heart functioned properly until his death. In the 1970’s better anti-rejection medication had developed and many of Barnard’s patients were living up to five years with their new hearts (History.com staff).

Organ transplantation is the removal of a healthy organ from one person and placing it into another whose organ has failed, or is injured. It is known to be life saving 80 percent of the time, but it is a major surgery that carries many me potential risks and complications- the biggest one being organ rejection. (WebMD) Organ transplants have quite some history. The first successful kidney transplant was performed not even a century ago, in 1954. Despite this small time gap, many technologies have been discovered in this field. Organ transplantation is being performed much more commonly but there are still many improvements that are needed to be made. (Transplant Village) Although organ transplants are supposed to save lives, it may not be worth the risks; it can easily cause health complications and economic instability to both the donor and recipient. For all, medical risks and psychological concerns can occur if the surgery is not successful, or if the donor and/or recipient do not recover fully. (Lohse) In order to prevent the body from rejecting an organ, immunosuppressant drugs are to be taken for the rest of the patient’s life. Immunosuppressant drugs, known as anti-rejection drugs, suppress the strength of the body’s immune system in order to lower the body’s ability to reject the organ that is recognized as foreign. But with this attempt for justice,

Physicians today are faced with a growing list of patients awaiting transplants for organs that have failed, but there are not enough donors to meet these needs. Countries all over the world have a “human organ shortage” and the waiting lists for organ transplants only seem to grow longer (Melo 427). In the United States 62,000 patients needed a kidney, liver, or pancreatic transplant in the year 2001. Xenotransplantation, which refers to the transplantation of organs, cells, or tissues from animal species into human beings, has been heralded as a promising technology that will help us save more lives and lessen the dire shortage of transplantable organs.

As of November 30th, 2017, 116,080 people formed the organ transplant waiting list. On average, twenty people on this list will die today. The number of people that need an organ transplant continues to grow; every ten minutes a new name is added to the list. According to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, “only 3 in 1,000 people die in a way that allows for organ donation” (“Organ Donation Statistics”). In order for a deceased person to give organs, the organs must still be alive to donate. Organ transplantation improved greatly over the last century, but with an insufficient amount of organs available, it limits breakthroughs. In essence, new methods need to replace the unavailable organs. These methods drastically improve the process of organ transplantation, and in the future, the overall humans well-being.