Dr. Sanjay Gupta Reports: Animal Pharm

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Xenotransplantation, or transplanting animal organs into humans, could be on the precipice of a breakthrough, and Dr. Gupta is speaking with the doctors, geneticists and ethicists on the cutting edge of this groundbreaking research. Dr. Gupta follows the journeys of patients making medical history as some of the first people in the world to receive gene-edited pig kidneys, including an extraordinary look inside the operating room during these historic procedures. "Here in the United States, there are more than 100,000 people currently waiting for an organ transplant, and 17 of them die every day. Sadly, despite our best efforts there won't be nearly enough organs to save every one of them," said Dr. Gupta. "For more than two years, I've been investigating the role that gene-edited pigs might play in extending more people's lives - in essence, cutting down on the need for human donors. After taking the journey from highly specialized pig farms to the laboratory where the gene editing and cloning of these pigs occur to the transplant operating room, we are now ready to present 'Animal Pharm' and show you how an idea once considered science fiction is now becoming reality." In this special, Dr. Gupta has remarkable access inside the farms where genetically modified pigs are raised, and is given unique perspective into their lifestyle, safety measures and genetic variations. He also speaks with the ethicists, scientists and activists who share concerns about the risk of accidentally transmitting a pig virus onto a susceptible human population.

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