For the first time ever, a 3-D model of an adult donor's kidney and a child recipient's abdomen has led to a life-saving transplant, according to the Telegraph. Three-year-old Lucy Boucher from Northern Ireland suffered from heart failure at just four months old, leading to kidney damage due to oxygen starvation that led her family to believe she would need kidney dialysis for the rest of her life. Now, surgeons from London's Guy's and St. Thomas' and Great Ormond Street Hospital have transplanted the kidney from her father, Chris Boucher, using detailed modeling techniques to map out the procedure.
"My first reaction when I saw the 3-D printout of my kidney was surprise at how big it was and I wondered how it could possibly fit into Lucy," said Boucher. "Seeing the model of her abdomen and the way the kidney was going to be transplanted inside her gave me a clear understanding of exactly what was going to happen."
Lucy's mother Ciara was also amazed at the new technique.
"We found it amazing that we could see these incredibly detailed models of Chris' kidney and Lucy's abdomen," she said. "Considering all the potential complications, it's fantastic that everything has gone so well - it's a massive relief. The transplant is life-changing for Lucy."
Using 3-D printing can create models that aid in complex surgeries due to their ability to increase their safety by mapping out the entire procedure, according to BBC News. Furthermore, the team can rehearse each step of the operation, ensuring that there are no surprises when it comes time to conduct the procedure in real-time, according to the Belfast Telegraph.
"The most important benefit is to patient safety. The 3-D printed models allow informative, hands-on planning, ahead of the surgery with replicas that are the next best thing to the actual organs themselves," said Pankaj Chandal, the transplant surgeon. "So essentially, this [the 3-D models] helps us with particularly planning that approach, but thinking about the incision, how to approach the vessels and the best lie of the kidney inside the abdomen."
