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54 -year -old Grandmother receives first pig kidney transplant, mechanical heart
54 -year -old Grandmother receives first pig kidney transplant, mechanical heart
By Francesca Hangeior
A 54-year-old grandmother has successfully received the first-ever combined pig kidney and mechanical heart pump transplant.
Lisa Pisano, a New Jersey native with end-stage kidney disease and heart failure, was not a candidate for heart and kidney transplant due to the shortage of human organ donations and chronic health conditions that minimized her likelihood of a good outcome.
She said: “All I want is the opportunity to have a better life.
“After I was ruled out for a human transplant, I learned I didn’t have a lot of time left.
“My doctors thought there may be a chance I could be approved to receive a gene-edited pig kidney, so I discussed it with my family and my husband. He has been by my side throughout this ordeal and wants me to be better.”
NYU Langone Health surgeons carried out an innovative two-stage procedure earlier this month in New York. On April 4, they surgically implanted a heart pump called a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) on Pisano.
Then on April 12, they performed a successful gene-edited pig kidney transplant on her. It included a pig’s thymus gland to help against her body rejecting the animal organ.
“It is incredible to consider the scientific achievements that have led to our ability to save Lisa’s life, and what we are endeavoring to do as a society for everyone in need of a lifesaving organ,” stated lead surgeon Robert Montgomery on Wednesday, April 24, when the NYU Langone Health announced the feat.
Montgomery, who performed the world’s first gene-edited pig kidney transplant to a braindead person in 2021, said Pisano’s procedure will “bring closer the possibility that no one will have to die, waiting for someone else to die, so they can be saved”.
Pisano is the second living patient to receive a pig kidney transplant, after Richard Slayman, 62, who also had end-stage kidney disease and was operated in Boston in March (read here).
While Slayman is the world’s first pig kidney transplant patient, Pisano is the first to receive a pig kidney transplant plus a heart pump.
“This unique approach is the first time in the world that LVAD surgery has been done on a dialysis patient with a subsequent plan to transplant a kidney,” stated Nader Moazami, chief of NYU Grossman School of Medicine’s Division of Heart and Lung Transplantation.
“The measure for success is a chance at a better quality of life and to give Lisa more time to spend with her family.”
Pisano’s daughter, Brittany Harvill, said she hopes her mother will soon be able to go home and spend time with her grandkids.
“I saw her for the first time after the surgery – and even this morning,” said Harvill, according to the New York Post. “And she looks like the best she’s looked and sounds in years.”
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Air Force Begins Moving Electoral Materials For Edo Guber Election
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has began airlifting the sensitive election materials for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to Benin, Edo State, ahead of the upcoming governorship election scheduled for September 21, 2024.
This was disclosed on Wednesday by the Deputy Director, Public Relations and Information, Group Captain Kabiru Ali.
The operation is part of the NAF’s efforts to ensure the timely and secure delivery of materials necessary for a smooth electoral process.
This development reinforces the collaboration between NAF and INEC to facilitate logistics and ensure a peaceful election in Edo State.
The Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Hasan Bala Abubakar, had previously reiterated NAF’s commitment to providing airlift support for the swift movement of electoral materials during a meeting with INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu.
This airlift operation is a crucial aspect of NAF’s constitutional responsibility to provide Military Aid to Civil Authority, underscoring the force’s dedication to supporting democratic processes in Nigeria. With the election just days away, the NAF’s timely intervention will help ensure the successful conduct of the governorship elections in Edo State.
Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State had earlier accused the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, of working with the All Progressives Congress (APC) to hunt the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members and supporters in the state and force them into hiding ahead of September 21 governorship election.
Obaseki, who made the allegation when a delegation led by the former Head of State, Abdusalam Abubakar, met with him to get the governor and his party to sign peace accord, said that the IGP had made nonsense of his (Obaseki’s) role as the chief security officer of the state.
The governor had said that the police chief obtained a warrant to arrest 60 members and supporters of PDP in Edo and that the IGP sent an armed “gang” of policemen who invaded the state, attacked PDP members, shot at a local government chairman and arrested 10 persons who are currently being detained in Abuja without charges.
Asked by the former head of state if his party would sign the peace accord, Obaseki said, “The person who is supposed to enforce the peace accord is now an active participant in creating a destructive environment.
“We are now in a situation where from the Inspector General’s office, there are armed gang policemen who came into Edo State, invaded, arrested and took away PDP members.
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“Dancing gives me abundant joy and peace of mind”-Gov Adeleke
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
The Governor of Osun State, Ademola Adeleke, has given reasons why he loves dancing.
The ‘Dancing Governor’, as he is fondly called, revealed this on Wednesday while responding to a tweet on X.
An X user, @Iwogoke, while praising the governor, stated that Adeleke has been busy fulfilling his electoral promises to the people of Osun State, while his political opponents believe he is only good at dancing.
Iwogoke tweeted, “I’m not flattering you, Your Excellency, your opponents think you can only dance but while they are busy shouting and calling you ‘Dancing Governor’, you are busy fulfilling your electoral promises to the people.”
Responding to the tweet via his verified X account, Adeleke explained that he loves dancing because it brings him joy.
Speaking further on his love for dancing, Adeleke highlighted that while dancing brings him immense happiness, his greater fulfilment comes from delivering the dividends of democracy to the people of Osun.
Outlining his administration’s efforts to enhance the state’s infrastructure, he noted that primary health centre rehabilitation is underway in at least 200 out of the 332 wards across Osun State, adding that road construction projects are also progressing in every local government area.
He wrote, “Dancing gives me joy, but delivering on my electoral promises and providing the dividends of democracy to the good people of Osun gives me even greater joy. Rehabilitation of primary health centers is ongoing in at least 200 out of 332 wards, and road construction is progressing in every Local Government!”
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