Doctors Protest Medical College of Wisconsin Over Deadly Use of Animals in Surgical Training

MILWAUKEE—The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, a nonprofit with more than 17,000 physician members, was in Milwaukee this Thursday to urge an end to the deadly use of live pigs in the Medical College of Wisconsin’s general surgery residency program. The group points out that hundreds of surgery programs across the country have replaced animals with devices modeled on human anatomy.

This doctor-led demonstration, which called for a shift to modern, human-relevant surgical training methods, also featured mobile billboards circulating throughout the area. Featuring an image of a young pig, the billboards read: “MCW: Patients Aren’t Pigs! Stop Killing Animals to ‘Teach’ Surgeons. PCRM.org/MCW.”

At MCW, surgeons in training cut into live pigs to perform invasive procedures and remove organs. Any surviving animals are killed following the training sessions. In contrast, the Physicians Committee has found that 78% of surveyed general surgery programs (223 of 285) in the U.S. and Canada use only nonanimal methods, such as human-patient simulators and “living” human cadavers. Programs affiliated with Harvard Medical School, Stanford University, the Mayo Clinic, the Cleveland Clinic, and the University of Wisconsin have all replaced animals.

“The country’s best medical centers are training surgeons without killing animals,” said Dr. Kerry Foley. “MCW should join their ranks by modernizing its curriculum.” 

Significant anatomical differences between pigs and humans make them poor models for surgery training. Compared with humans, pigs have smaller torsos, lighter limbs, and thicker skin, as well as key differences in the anatomy of the head, neck, rib cage, and airway, which can potentially lead to harmful results. For example, the force needed to perform an emergency airway puncture in a pig may fully slice through a human’s windpipe.

MCW already has the “state-of-the-art” STAR Center, which offers high-fidelity patient simulators and procedural task trainers that accurately model human anatomy and could replace animals for surgery training.

Scientific studies show that simulators and cadavers are equivalent or superior to animals in teaching surgical skills, building confidence, and preparing surgeons for real-world stress. A 2020 U.S. military study found that trainees using the Human Worn Surgical Simulator—which has lifelike skin, breakable bones, and a pumping artificial heart—improved their resuscitation time for a wounded patient by 10 minutes and reduced medical errors.

For a copy of the mobile billboard artwork, route details, or photos from the demonstration, please contact Reina Pohl at 202-527-7326 or rpohl [at] pcrm.org (rpohl[at]pcrm[dot]org).