Scientists Revive Pig Kidneys That Were Frozen for a Year

Scientists froze pig kidneys for months, then revived them using magnetic warming, offering hope for longer organ storage and more transplants.

B2Published 20 Oct 2026 Updated 20 Oct 2026

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A team at the University of Minnesota has brought pig kidneys back to life after freezing them for months. One kidney stayed in a freezer for more than a year. The organs were cooled to minus 150 degrees Celsius, where they turn into a solid that looks like glass. After warming, they worked again inside living pigs. This is the first time scientists have shown this with an organ as big as a kidney.

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A at the University of Minnesota has brought pig kidneys back to life after freezing them for months.

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The hard part is the warming. If a frozen organ heats unevenly, ice crystals can tear the tissue. To avoid this, the team filled the kidneys with a protective liquid and tiny particles of iron oxide. A magnetic field then made the particles give off heat, so the whole kidney warmed up at the same time. After the surgery, the kidneys turned pink again and began to make urine. The surgeon Erik Finger and the engineer John Bischof led the work.

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If a organ heats unevenly, ice crystals can tear the tissue.

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Today a donated kidney can survive only about 36 hours outside the body, so some of them are thrown away before they reach a patient. More than 100,000 people in the United States are waiting for an organ. Better storage could give doctors more time to find a match. But the results are early. The study has not been checked by other experts yet, and the researchers must show that the kidneys can work for a long time. They also need to make the method work for organs the size of a human kidney.

Topics Health

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Questions

OpinionDo you think research on animals is acceptable when it can help people? Why or why not?
OpinionShould everyone be an organ donor by default? What do you think?
ExperienceHave you or someone you know ever waited a long time for medical help? What was it like?
ExperienceTell me about a news story about science or health that surprised you recently.
What ifIf doctors could freeze a person for many years, would you try it? Why or why not?
What ifWhat if donated organs could be stored for years? How might hospitals change?

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I think that medical research is...
In my country, organ donation is...
On the one hand..., but on the other hand...
It would be great if...

Words from the text

organ B1
surgeon B2
freezer A2
tissue C1
donate B2
patient A2
match B1
researcher B2

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# Speaking practice: Medical research and organ donation

You are my friendly English conversation partner. We talk by voice, so keep every reply short: one to three sentences. Speak English only.

First ask me, in one short question, what my English level is, then use words and sentences at that level.

Topic: Medical research and organ donation. It comes from a short text called “Scientists Revive Pig Kidneys That Were Frozen for a Year”.

Ask these questions one at a time. Wait for my answer, react to it in a few words, then ask the next one.

1. Do you think research on animals is acceptable when it can help people? Why or why not?
2. Should everyone be an organ donor by default? What do you think?
3. Have you or someone you know ever waited a long time for medical help? What was it like?
4. Tell me about a news story about science or health that surprised you recently.
5. If doctors could freeze a person for many years, would you try it? Why or why not?
6. What if donated organs could be stored for years? How might hospitals change?

If I get stuck, give me one of these sentence starters or make the question easier:

- I think that medical research is...
- In my country, organ donation is...
- On the one hand..., but on the other hand...
- It would be great if...

Encourage me to use these words from the text:

- organ (B1)
- surgeon (B2)
- freezer (A2)
- tissue (C1)
- donate (B2)
- patient (A2)
- match (B1)
- researcher (B2)

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- Quietly keep a list of my mistakes and of the new words I used or needed.
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