Perhaps it was the impressive array of military hardware that led Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin to reflect on mortality during this week’s military parade in Beijing. Their exchange was lighthearted rather than serious, but at 72 years old, both leaders may feel the approach of old age more keenly than their companion, North Korea’s 41-year-old leader Kim Jong-un.
Through an interpreter, Xi remarked to Putin that 70 is considered young these days. Putin responded by suggesting that with repeated organ transplants, people might be able to “stave off old age indefinitely.” Xi added, “This century, it might be possible to live to 150.”
It was casual conversation, but have advances in organ transplantation really reached the point where the procedure can extend the lives of healthy individuals, not just save those with terminal illnesses?
For patients with specific conditions, the benefits of transplantation are clear. “When you have end-stage kidney, liver, or heart disease, transplantation generally adds years of life,” says Reza Motallebzadeh, a professor of renal transplantation at UCL. “It is absolutely life-saving.”
A wide range of organs and tissues can now be transplanted, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, pancreas, liver, small bowel, skin, bone, heart valves, and corneas. The list continues to grow. Earlier this year, a woman in the UK became the first to give birth after receiving a womb transplant from her sister.
Globally, the demand for organ transplants far exceeds the supply. In Britain, the waiting list for life-saving transplants has never been longer. With limited availability, available organs are prioritized for those who stand to benefit the most—typically younger patients with terminal illnesses.
But what if organs were plentiful? Would it make sense to offer them to older people to maintain their health? Motallebzadeh is doubtful. “An organ transplant is a major operation, and you need to be physiologically robust enough to survive it,” he says.
There are other concerns as well. “The three main causes of death in transplant recipients are cancer, infection, and cardiovascular disease,” Motallebzadeh notes. “Many anti-rejection therapies have side effects that contribute to these risks.”
In short, undergoing multiple surgeries and taking powerful anti-rejection drugs—which increase the risk of cancer, heart disease, and serious infections—could actually shorten a person’s life rather than extend it.
Significant efforts are underway to address the organ shortage. One approach involves using organs from pigs. Known as xenotransplantation, this remains experimental, but doctors in New York have transplanted pig kidneys and lungs into brain-dead patients to observe how they function.
In the past year, two living patients received genetically modified pig kidneys. The modifications removed harmful pig genes, deactivated dormant viruses in the pig genome that could cause infections, and added human genes to improve compatibility.
The organs were provided by eGenesis, a biotech company co-founded by Harvard geneticist George Church. He reported that both patients are now “healthy and happy” and no longer require kidney dialysis.
The company has received FDA approval for a clinical trial involving 33 patients. “If those 33 do as well as the first two, then it will be scaled up for the wider population,” Church said. “The number of pigs needed would be a tiny fraction of those raised each year for bacon and pork chops.”
For now, eGenesis is focusing on kidneys, livers, and hearts, but Church envisions eventually providing every organ and tissue currently transplanted between humans.
Raising pigs for organs will undoubtedly face criticism, but even more radical and ethically complex proposals are being considered. Earlier this year, researchers suggested that advances in stem cell biology and artificial womb technology could…This technology could allow scientists to create spare human bodies. The process is complex: it involves creating an embryo from a patient’s cells, disabling the genes necessary for brain development, and growing it in an artificial womb. The result is a brainless human body, designed to provide organs for its genetic donor.
“There’s an ick factor,” says Carsten Charlesworth, a postdoctoral researcher at Stanford University. “For many people, an arm, a liver, or a kidney is acceptable. But when you have a body that’s complete except for a brain, it feels more human-like, and that makes people uneasy.”
George Church is more optimistic about another approach. Organs like the liver could be genetically modified, either inside or outside the body, to resist infection and release anti-aging compounds—such as proteins that help maintain good health. “You’re turning the organ into an anti-aging therapy,” he explains. If done within the body, this avoids the need for major surgery, risky anti-rejection drugs, and the creation of headless humans.
Could people born this century live to 150? “Probably someone reading your article will be the last person without the option of living to 150,” Church says. “It would be sad to be the one who just misses out—and I have a feeling I might be one of those people.”
Frequently Asked Questions
Of course Here is a list of FAQs addressing the scientific validity of claims about brainless bodies and pig organs in relation to longevity assertions by leaders like Putin and Xi
General Beginner Questions
Q What are these claims about brainless bodies and pig organs
A The claims suggest that scientists are creating bodies without brains to be used as organ farms for transplants or that pig organs can be easily transplanted into humans to extend life These are often presented as nearfuture realities for achieving extreme longevity
Q Is it scientifically possible to create a brainless human body for its organs
A No this is not currently scientifically possible and is considered science fiction A body cannot develop or survive without a brain which controls essential functions like heartbeat breathing and hormone regulation The ethical and biological barriers are immense
Q Can we use pig organs for human transplants
A Yes but its an emerging and highly experimental field called xenotransplantation A few patients have received genetically modified pig hearts but these were lastresort experimental procedures The organs are rejected by the human immune system without significant genetic modification and longterm success has not been achieved yet
Q So are Putin and Xi talking about real science
A They are referencing areas of real scientific research but are drastically oversimplifying and exaggerating the current capabilities The idea of readily available organ farms or a simple pill for extreme longevity is not supported by evidence
Advanced Detailed Questions
Q What is the biggest scientific hurdle with xenotransplantation
A The primary hurdle is preventing hyperacute rejection where the human immune system immediately attacks the nonhuman organ Scientists are using CRISPR geneediting to modify pigs to make their organs more humanlike but the risk of rejection infection from animal viruses and longterm functionality remain major unsolved challenges
Q What does longevity science actually focus on if not these ideas
A Real longevity research focuses on understanding the aging process itself This includes studying cellular senescence telomere shortening DNA damage and metabolic health The goal is to develop interventions that slow aging and reduce agerelated diseases not to pursue scifi concepts like swapping organs from brainless clones
Q Could these claims be a form of propaganda or distraction
A
