Richard Slayman, who made history by receiving the world's first genetically modified pig kidney transplant, died nearly two months after he underwent the procedure, his family announced on Saturday.
The cause of his sudden death remains unknown. However, the hospital, which had performed the surgery, has confirmed it was not related to the transplant.
The 62-year-old underwent the successful four-hour surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital.
"The Mass General transplant team is deeply saddened at the sudden passing of Mr. Rick Slayman. We have no indication that it was the result of his recent transplant," Massachusetts General Hospital said in a statement.
The pig kidney used for the transplant had been genetically edited to remove harmful pig genes and add certain human ones.
Pig kidneys had been transplanted previously into brain-dead patients, but Slayman was the first living person to receive one.
Its noteworthy, the two men who received genetically modified pig heart transplants, but neither man lived more than two months after the operations.
