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> First actually pig heart transplant was in 2022. That patient died shortly thereafter. The condition is critical and there's a lot of immunological pressure
by echelon 1y ago
> First actually pig heart transplant was in 2022.
That patient died shortly thereafter. The condition is critical and there's a lot of immunological pressure put on the patient.
China is smart to study this in living cadavers first. It's much easier to find patients that aren't already on death's door, and there is no need to keep the patient alive. You can run experiment after experiment.
- exhilaration 1y agoI'm almost afraid to ask, what are living cadavers?
- Nextgrid 1y agoPresumably people who are on the verge of death and beyond any kind of proven treatments. They're technically alive but have a very short predicted lifespan. You can try a novel treatment on those but at the same time are limited by ethical concerns regarding pain and future survival (if the transplant "works", you are now in a tricky situation, as you can't easily do anything that has the potential to make the situation worse... and given it's uncharted territory, anything has the potential to make it worse). Brain-dead people don't have such limitations. You don't have to worry about causing pain nor shortening potential survival, so you can try things that are likely to "kill" them (cause the transplant to fail, or other issues) and learn from the outcomes.
- nkrisc 1y ago> Brain-dead people don't have such limitations. You don't have to worry about causing pain Fortunately determining brain death is a problem with a clear-cut answer with a clear line dividing “brain death” and “not brain death”. Right?
- Nextgrid 1y agoVery good point - I don't have an answer for that. But I'd say if there was a choice between killing a person who is very much alive and conscious by our current standards, and one who is "brain dead" by the same standards, I'd still pick the latter. Part of it is a choice you make when choosing to donate your body for research. There's a chance brain death can be determined incorrectly (though in this situation it's likely the same determination will be used to withdraw life-support, research donation or not).
- echelon 1y agoThis is what holds us back. If I'm ever declared brain dead, I want scientists experimenting on me. That's a much better use than giving organs to just a handful of people. It pushes the salients forward for everyone.
- XorNot 1y agoI mean for experimental organ transplants we could literally do both though.
- moi2388 1y agoNo, but you can measure pain response, and predict pretty well if they ever wake up, so well enough for this.
- nkrisc 1y agoActually it’s less the science of it that concerns me, but whether procedures will be rigorously followed.
- baranul 1y agoAgree with you on that. People can say that there is a procedure, but verifying that they are following it is another matter. Also curious as to the process for volunteering people for such experiments. Like if there is some paperwork that the family signs off on.
- actionfromafar 1y agoAnd in China they can just decide they will never wake up regardless.
- bhickey 1y agoBrain death without cardiac death.
- thehappypm 1y agoNot that shortly, the patient lived about two months.
- deleted 1y ago[deleted]