First Clinical Trial of Gene-Edited Pig Kidneys Begins

NYU Langone researchers won the 2026 Gizmodo Science Fair for xenotransplantation work that has now entered the world's first clinical trial for end-stage kidney disease. The EXPAND study, sponsored by United Therapeutics, gave its first patient a gene-edited pig kidney last November. Over 100,000 Americans await organs; only 49,000 transplants occur yearly, and 12 people die daily waiting.