3-D Printed Titanium Ribcage Cam Support Damaged Chest

"We thought, maybe we could create a new type of implant that we could fully customize the intricate structures of the sternum and ribs,"

A cancer patient recovered well from a surgery involving a 3-D printed titanium sternum and rib cage placed in his chest, according to a research organization in Australia. 

The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) reported earlier this month that a 54-year-old patient in Spain suffering from a chest wall sarcoma—type of cancerous growing tumor—had undergone a successful surgery where doctors added the titanium rib cage.

"We thought, maybe we could create a new type of implant that we could fully customize the intricate structures of the sternum and ribs," Doctor José Aranda, a surgeon who helped implant the ribcage, is quoted saying.

Doctors Aranda, Marcelo Jimene and Gonzalo Varela are part of the surgery team at Salamanca University Hospital located in west of Madrid, Spain. The team wanted to provide a safer option for the patient and improve his post-surgery recovery, according to a press release from the implant's manufacturer. 

The rib and sternum implant placed in the man's chest was developed by Anatomics an Australian-owned medical device company in Melbourne. Anatomics, specializes in manufacturing specific implants for surgeons around the world.

The customized implant included a pieces to go over the bone and pieces that could be screwed into the bone. According to Andrew Batty, Anatomics chief executive officer, previously used designs did not consider long term fixation, or that the implants could loosen over time.

A video showing the development and use of the implant on CSIRO's YouTube page said the customization would be impossible to manufacture traditionally. Anatomics used a $1.3 million Arcam printer to make the implant.

Details of the procedure can be found in the European Journal of Cardio-Thoracic Surgery. 

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