A surgeon attaches a 'new nose' made with a 3D printer to the patient's arm, used for reconstructive surgery on the nose lost due to cancer



In France, surgery was performed to form a 3D printed nose on the forearm for use in reconstructive surgery for a woman who lost her nose to cancer treatment. The arm-mounted nose was later transplanted to her face, and the woman reportedly regained her nose and sense of smell.

New nose successfully grown on French woman's arm

https://www.lemonde.fr/en/science/article/2022/11/22/new-nose-successfully-grown-on-french-woman-s-arm_6005178_10.html

Woman in France has nose grown on her arm from 3D-printed biomaterial then grafted onto her face | Evening Standard
https://www.standard.co.uk/news/world/organ-transplant-nose-reconstruction-surgery-france-toulouse-b1038640.html

Surgeons 3D-Printed a New Nose, And Then Attached It to The Patient's Arm : ScienceAlert
https://www.sciencealert.com/surgeons-3d-printed-a-new-nose-and-then-attached-it-to-the-patients-arm

Carine (pseudonym), a 50-year-old woman living in southern France, underwent nose transplant surgery at the Cancer Institute of Toulouse University, France. In 2013, Karine underwent major surgery for nasal cancer, losing part of her face and most of her nose.

After living without a nose for four years after cancer surgery, Karine underwent a skin graft surgery but failed. Even with braces that had to be removed every night, Karine became withdrawn and lost her social life.



So chief surgeon Agnès Duprée-Bory turned to 3D-printed organ-shaping techniques, which he had previously learned from talking to a PhD student in Belgium. The student is a biomaterials researcher and told Mr. Dupre-Bory about his experience testing a biosynthetic implant for the cheekbones at the 3D printer company Cerhum.

“The first challenge was to create a new type of implant, both medically and technically,” says Dupré-Borys. Cerhum has a technology to form an implant that serves as a scaffolding for cells using hydroxyapatite, which is a component of tooth enamel and bone and is also a natural mineral, and used this to create a prototype of the nose.

The second hurdle is turning the 3D printed implant into a living nose. Usually, the method of using the skin on the back or embedding it directly in the relevant part of the patient is taken, but the medical team such as Dupre-Bory first chose to attach the nose to Karine's arm. The arm has the advantage that the skin is thinner than other parts of the body and it is easier to connect blood vessels, and it is also advantageous for transplanting the nose to the face.

A nose made of biomaterial and temple skin was grown in Karine's arms for two months before being transplanted onto her face. The 6-hour transplant operation was successful, and after 10 days of hospitalization and 3 weeks of antibiotics, it was confirmed that the progress was going well.

The University of Toulouse reported in a November 2022 Facebook post that the transplant was successful. In addition, the hospital told the media, 'Never before has this kind of reconstruction been performed in such a delicate and poorly developed area of blood vessels. Thanks to the cooperation of the Belgian medical device manufacturer Cerhum and the medical team, which specializes in the reconstruction of .


'When I woke up the next day, I was completely overwhelmed. I hadn't been out in 10 years, and my husband and I would go to a restaurant again,' said Karine, who had her nose back for the first time in about 10 years. I am determined,' he said.

The new nose not only looks good but also functions as a nose, and Karine has been able to breathe easier and enjoy the smell of coffee in the morning, and she seems to have been able to regain almost normal life. .

In the future, Mr. Dupré-Boris and others plan to apply this technology to improve internal implants in other body parts that have been restricted so far.

in Note, Posted by log1l_ks