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Full Version: Dog recieves a 3D printed skull piece
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Nine year old Patches developed cancer. It was growing in her skull bone and endangering her life. The surgery was able to remove the cancerous bone. The 3D printer was able to make a skull piece to fit Patches perfectly. This enabled the doctors to do the surgery more easily because they could safely replace the removed bone material.

https://www.wvtm13.com/article/a-dog-los...e/23463519

The whole thing has been a great success. Patches is still cancer free six months later and is able to live her life fully again.

This use of a 3D printer has all kinds of possibilities for dogs and humans. We can replace body parts when we have to, but the 3D printer allows us to replace the part with one that fits. That increases the chances of success greatly. Dogs like Patches can be helped. It is a new era of medicine. Who knows what we will be able to do.  If we can use tissue grown from the patients cells  it is even better.

I wish Patches many happy years of life.
It's amazing. Not so many years ago Patches would have been put to sleep because of that. Hopefully that will now give him a lot longer on Mother Earth and with his family.

3D printing used in medicine is definitely a brilliant thing and as you say, it is part of a new era. There is so much can already be done with it.

Bless little Patches and may he be happy and healthy for a lot longer yet!
You  are right, a short time ago Patches would have been put down. There would have been nothing they could do.  Now they can print a skull piece that fits and replaces the cancerous bone. Who knows what else they can do in the future. If a bone is shattered in an accident, maybe they can replace it with  a bone that is whole. I don't know if they can create tissue that actually lives and grows, but that might be in the future.


For now Patches can have years of happy life and is what matters.
Wonderful news.
I thought it was amazing. The dog would even look good because the printed piece was a perfect match.