Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
PETA Condemns Xenotransplantation After Death Of Historic Kidney Patient
Animal rights organization PETA has condemned the use of animal organs in human transplantation after the world's first living recipient of a genetically modified pig kidney passed away just weeks after receiving the organ transplantation. ... The transplantation was celebrated as a "historic milestone" in medical research, which experts hope will make organ transplantation more readily available in the future. However, not everyone agrees with the use of animals in this technology. (Dewan, 5/15)
Gregory Hess was running out of time. His kidneys had stopped working. He鈥檇 die without an organ transplant. For two years, Hess had scrambled to find a kidney donor. Friends and family offered to donate, but each potential donor got ruled out for medical or logistical reasons. Hess, an emergency medicine doctor from Wayne, began flying around the country to register with multiple transplant centers, which improved his chances of getting a kidney on a waitlist with roughly 90,000 Americans. (Ruderman, 5/16)
Lauren Sheppard decided to perform 鈥28 acts of kindness鈥 for her 28th birthday. She paid for the customer behind her at the Dunkin鈥 Donuts drive-through, left flowers at neighbors鈥 doorsteps, and wrote heartfelt cards to friends. And, she donated a kidney to a stranger. 鈥淚t was a no-brainer,鈥 Sheppard said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 need it. Somebody else does. I鈥檓 going to give this away.鈥 (Ruderman, 5/16)
Also 鈥
Twenty-eight years ago, Brad Szczecinski was at a volleyball tournament in prime physical fitness when he ended up in the emergency room. His blood pressure spiked, and he learned quickly he would need a new kidney 鈥 the main regulator of blood pressure in the body. (Kalra, 5/15)