3D Printing and the Organ Crisis

Abstract

According to the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) published in January 2019, there are 124,206 men, women, and children currently in need of a lifesaving organ. With barely 26,448 transplants performed annually and only 12,740 people registered as donors, this, unfortunately, equates to 8,000 individuals dying per year in the United States alone. Nevertheless, can advances in bio‐engineering alleviate this upward trending crisis?Researchers utilizing three‐dimensional (3D) bio‐printing are currently able to mimic the structure of natural tissues. Recently published in The Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery (2016), Lei Wand et al. reported successful 3D‐printed titanium ribs implanted into a patient following an extensive lung cancer resection. Further research is being conducted regarding more complex tissues on animal models to test the viability of the 3D printed tissues before implanting into human patients. In 2019, Jae‐Hyun Park et al. published in Science Reported, a 3D‐bioprinted artificial trachea with autologous epithelial cells and chondrocytes in rabbits are feasible. 3D printing has successfully been used for skin grafts, tracheal splints, artificial ears, knee meniscus, corneas, and bone, but not complex organs.Though challenging to replicate synthetically, researchers are still working on angiogenesis as one of significant limitation in the process of transplantation. This presentation reviews the current status of 3D printed organ replication for life‐saving transplants.3D‐Bioprinting OrgansFigure 1