Anthony Atala: Printing a human kidney
Anthony Atala discusses the shortage of organs available for transplant and the aging population. Medicine has enabled us to live longer, however our organs tend to fail. There is now an organ shortage crisis as the number of people requiring an organ transplant has doubled yet the number of transplants taking place has barely increased. Atala disusses how regenerative medicine could help combat this organ shortage for those in need. Solid organs are the most in need, 90% of patients on the transplant list are waiting for a kidney. Using a 3D scanner to create a profile of a patient’s kidney, Atala is then able to use a 3D printer to create an exact replica for transplant, the printing process takes just 7 hours.
