100,000 Americans Are Waiting. Pig Kidneys Might Save Them

Pig kidney transplants crossed a historic threshold in 2025, with patients now living months on a gene-edited pig kidney. For the roughly 100,000 Americans waiting for a kidney, it is the first major advance in decades. Board-certified nephrologist Dr. Sean Hashmi explains what actually happened, why surviving months rather than days is the real milestone, how the gene edits work, and what still stands in the way before this becomes routine. WHAT YOU'LL LEARN What the 2025 milestone actually was, and why months of function matters far more than days How 69 gene edits make a pig kidney far more compatible with the human immune system What the macaque and decedent-recipient studies showed before the first living human transplants Why formal clinical trials are now enrolling patients in the United States What still stands in the way: rejection, infection risk, and proving long-term function CHAPTERS 00:00 The 2025 Milestone 01:03 Why Six Months Matters 02:55 The Gene-Edited Pig Kidney Explained 04:07 The China Results 05:35 What Animal Studies Predicted 06:52 Clinical Trials Now Underway 08:38 What's Still Hard 09:52 Your Action Plan WATCH NEXT: Your Body Is Telling You About Kidney Damage Right Now    • Your Body Is Telling You About Kidney Dama...   KEY REFERENCES Anand RP, Layer JV, Heja D, et al. Design and testing of a humanized porcine donor for xenotransplantation. Nature. 2023;622(7982):393-401. PMID 37821590. Montgomery RA, Stern JM, Lonze BE, et al. Results of two cases of pig-to-human kidney xenotransplantation. New England Journal of Medicine. 2022;386(20):1889-1898. PMID 35584156. Fishman JA, El Khoury J, Kawai T, et al. Infectious disease surveillance and management in clinical xenotransplantation: experience with the first human porcine kidney transplant. American Journal of Transplantation. 2025;25(11):2451-2457. PMID 40570964. ----- Members get new videos 48 hours early, plus a monthly live Q and A with Dr. Sean. Join:    / @seanhashmimd   ----- Subscribe:    / @seanhashmimd   ----- Weekly evidence-based kidney, metabolic, and longevity research, one email: https://selfprinciple.org/newsletter ----- ABOUT DR. SEAN HASHMI Dr. Sean Hashmi, MD, MS, FASN, is a board-certified nephrologist and obesity medicine specialist. He is the founder of SELFPrinciple.org, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and creator of the SELF Principle framework: Sleep, Exercise, Love, Food. CONNECT Website: https://selfprinciple.org Instagram:   / seanhashmimd   DISCLAIMER The information in this content is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking it because of something you have seen in this content. The views expressed here are my own and do not represent the views of my employer or any affiliated institution. #PigKidney #Xenotransplantation #KidneyTransplant