skip to main content

Xenotransplantation Current Status — ESENeph MCQ

Instant feedback + full explanation. One question, done properly.

ModerateTransplantationXenotransplantation Current StatusESENeph

A 65-year-old man with CKD G5D on haemodialysis has been offered kidney transplantation but expresses anxiety about the surgery and asks about alternatives. He is particularly interested in xenotransplantation. What is the current status?

Educational content. Not a substitute for clinical judgement or local policy.

Reveal the answer and explanation

Correct answer: E — Genetically modified pig kidney transplants have been performed in clinical research settings (first cases in 2024) but remain experimental – standard deceased and living donor human allotransplantation is the current evidence-based treatment

Xenotransplantation (animal-to-human organ transplantation) has entered early clinical testing. In 2024, genetically modified pig kidneys (with knockouts of pig antigens and knock-ins of human genes to prevent hyperacute rejection) were transplanted into living human recipients in clinical research protocols. Early results showed initial graft function, but significant challenges remain (long-term rejection, viral zoonosis risk – porcine endogenous retrovirus, immunological barriers). Xenotransplantation is not yet available as a standard treatment. Patients should be counselled that human allotransplantation remains the evidence-based standard of care.

Reference: Locke et al 2024 – Pig Kidney Xenotransplant; Montgomery et al 2022