Additive manufacturing, more commonly known as 3d printing, is a process that allows you to build objects from scratch, one layer at a time. It seems like a fairly young field: researchers have actually been using this technique for several years, and it has already revolutionized the way we look at manufacturing. The possibilities offered by 3D printing are endless; some examples are using it to build homes, schools, and even firearms. Now this technology is starting to pry its nose (it must be said!) even in the medical field.
Yes, because a team of surgeons at the University Hospital of Toulouse, France, successfully grafted a 3D printed and grown nose onto the patient's arm.
Technology has evolved such that it is able to create not only large structures, but also smaller structures, small enough to enter the bloodstream and treat diseases. It might seem futuristic, something still in development, but a Belgian company, the Cerhum, has also gained European approval for patient use. And it is precisely the technology of this company that has made the work of the French surgeons possible.
An almost desperate case
The construction of bones within our body occurs using chemicals such ashydroxyapatite (HAP) and the tricalcium phosphate (TCP). Usually, these substances are produced by our bone cells and shaped according to the position of the bone. However, they can also be produced in the laboratory, and also economically: this was the key.
According to the details provided in the Press release that I received, almost 10 years ago the patient operated on today had lost a large part of the nose and the anterior (frontal) region of the palate. In 2013 he was diagnosed with cancer of the nasal cavity: from there operations, radiotherapy and chemotherapy saved his life, but left him without a nose for several years.
Even an attempted reconstruction didn't work, and the patient failed to adjust to a prosthesis.
How I print your nose in 3D using the human body
Researchers at Toulouse University Hospital collaborated with Cerhum, which provided them with a highly personalized nasal reconstruction option. A reconstruction that had never been performed before, as there were very few blood vessels available for the reconstructed tissue to connect.
The intervention was completed in two phases. First, the custom 3D printed biomaterial that replaced the nose cartilage was constructed using images of the patient before treatment. In phase two, the structure was implanted on the patient's forearm. This allowed skin grafts (taken from the temple area) to grow with the necessary blood vessels.
Two months later, surgeons at the University of Toulouse transplanted the 3D printed nose onto the patient's face. An innovative microsurgery was performed to connect blood vessels grown from the skin of the arm to those on the patient's face.
After surgery, the patient remained in hospital for just 10 days, continuing with antibiotics for another three weeks. Today his life has completely changed.
