Xenotransplantation - not the cure for the organ shortage

by Arryn Ketter
Fall 1999 newsletter

The chronic shortage of human organs for transplantation has led some researchers in the United States and elsewhere to research alternatives to human organs, namely the use of organs from animals such as pigs and nonhuman primates. Some 55 animal-to-human whole organ transplants, xenotransplants, have been conducted since 1906. None have been successful—both the animal donor and the human recipient have died shortly after the transplantation surgery.

Not only is the success rate abysmal, but the significant health risks make xenotransplantation dangerous. The Medical Research Modernization Committee in its report Of Pigs, Primates and Plagues writes that "responsible public health authorities would steer clear of xenotransplatation in the interest of human health, particularly in light of the knowledge that animal viruses can jump the species barrier and kill humans".

When an organ is transplanted into the human body, the normal defense barriers such as the skin and the gastrointestinal tract are useless in preventing infection, thereby making the transmission of potentially fatal viruses like the Nipah virus—which spread from pigs to humans killing 111 people—much easier.

Still, organizations such as Americans for Medical Progress and biotechnology companies such as Novartis and Alexion continue to pressure governmental agencies like the FDA and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) for support of xenotransplantation. While on January 29, 1999 the Council of Europe, a barometer of public opinion for 40 European countries, voted for a world-wide ban on xenotransplantation technology, North American public health officials have resisted instituting such a ban largely due to pressure from biotechnology companies who have poured millions of dollars into developing herds of transgenic pigs for xenotransplants.

In April 1999 a de facto ban on nonhuman primate xenografts was instituted because of the "significant infectious disease risk" but no ban was instituted on any other cross-species transplantation, including the current animal of choice, the pig. The Coalition for Responsible Transplantation (CRT) is working to ban not only pig-human transplantations but all forms of xenotransplantation.

CRT cites among their reasons for a complete halt to xenotransplantation the dangers to public health due to the transmission of deadly viruses (some of which are still unknown), the environmental problems, the weak regulatory oversight, human error and negligence that would facilitate disease transmission.

The only viable solution for the human organ shortage is for more individuals to sign their organ donor cards. It is a gesture that can save not only countless human lives but also, if companies like Novartis and Alexion have their way, countless animal lives.