World’s First Bioprinted Trachea Transplant Marks a New Era in Medical Innovation
3DPrint.com March 26, 2024
A research team from the Catholic University of Korea has successfully implanted the world’s first bioprinted artificial trachea into a patient, customized using adult stem cells from another person.
Led by Professor Kim Sung-won from the university’s ENT (Ear, Nose, and Throat) Department, the team performed the transplantation on a woman in her fifties who had lost part of her trachea after undergoing thyroid cancer surgery. The surgery occurred last August, but the Catholic University delayed the announcement until six months of follow-up observation were completed, ensuring the successful engraftment of the trachea.
“The success of this transplant is a clinical trial success story of the world’s first artificial human organ developed by applying bioprinting precision engineering technology to...