Lawrence Faucette, a 58-year-old man from Frederick, became just the second person ever to receive a successful transplant of a genetically-modified pig heart when he underwent surgery on Sept. 20.
Faucette, a father of two and a 20-year Navy veteran, was suffering from end-stage heart disease with no options remaining.
“My only real hope left is to go with the pig heart, the xenotransplant,” said Mr. Faucette during an interview from his hospital room a few days before his surgery. “Dr. Griffith, Dr. Mohiuddin and their entire staff have been incredible, but nobody knows from this point forward. At least now I have hope, and I have a chance.”
The FDA granted emergency approval for the surgery on Friday, Sept. 15, through its single patient investigational new drug (IND) “compassionate use” pathway. The approval was granted in the hope of saving the patient’s life.
After the surgery was completed by the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) faculty at the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC), Mr. Faucette was breathing on his own and his new heart was functioning well without any assistance from support devices.
“We are once again offering a dying patient a shot at a longer life, and we are incredibly grateful to Mr. Faucette for his bravery and willingness to help advance our knowledge of this field,” said Bartley P. Griffith, MD who surgically transplanted the pig heart. “We are hopeful that he will get home soon to enjoy more time with his wife and the rest of his loving family.”
More information about the procedure can be found here.
