大象传媒

鈥淚t was either die or do this transplant ... I know it鈥檚 a shot in the dark, but it鈥檚 my last choice鈥� - the words of David Bennett, a 57 year old American patient, before he was rolled into the operational theatre for an eight hour procedure in Baltimore.

It was a first-of-its-kind surgery, he has received a transplant of a genetically-modified pig heart. His doctors say he is doing well.

Dr. Christine Lau is chair of the Department of Surgery at the University of Maryland School of Medicine spoke to Newsday about the procedure. She was in the operating theatre during the surgery.

(Photo: Surgeons operating on Mr David Bennett. The operation, carried out in Baltimore, Maryland, took more than seven hours to complete. Credit: University of Maryland, School of Medicine)