3D Organ Printing by Patsy Dahlheimer and Marie Silverstrim
Tasks: Describe how users are currently doing these tasks
Presently, organ transplants are completed by surgeons using donated organs, and are considered
relatively safe, routine procedures. The main problem of one is supply and demand, where there are a
lot more patients needing organs than there are donated organs. This is in large part due to advances in
medical technology that allow people to live longer, increasing the need for organ transplants without a
reciprocal increase in organ donors. This shortage of organs is the problem we aim to solve with the 3D
printer. The current process of organ transplantation is comprised of three phases:
1. Organ distribution system: Patients find a transplant team to sign off that he/she is a good
candidate for transplant. The treatment team will put the patient’s name on a list that’s part of
the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN), which is a national waiting list.
When an organ becomes available, the local organ procurement organization (OPO) notifies the
appropriate treatment team that there is a viable organ for their patient, and the final decision
to accept the organ resides with the treatment team. Once accepted, the patient must rush to
the hospital to get prepped for surgery. A patient can wait for years on the list and then receive
notification of the procedure in a matter of hours.
2. The surgery: There are actually two surgeries that take place – the surgery to procure the organ
from the donor and the surgery to transplant the organ into the recipient. If the donor organ
needs to be transplanted, the surgeons need preservative chemicals, a cooler filled with ice and
a mode to transport the organ (usually plane or helicopter). The patient is under full anesthesia
at this point, but the actual surgery does not begin until the organ arrives at the hospital.
Typically, the organ transplant procedure takes about five hours
3. Recovery: After receiving a new organ, the patient typically requires medical treatment for the
rest of his/her life. Because the transplanted tissue is coming from a foreign body, there is a
good chance that the patient’s body will reject the organ.
Source: http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/human-biology/organ-transplant.htm
Environment: Describe where users are currently doing these tasks
Generally, organ transplants take place in hospitals throughout the world. Our research has shown that
U.S. hospitals that do organ transplants are located in metropolitan areas and areas that are more
densely populated, likely to capitalize on a larger donor base. These hospitals are well-funded and have
many resources at their disposal to complete these transplants.
In some circumstances, transplants may take place in a less traditional medical setting, but at the very
least the area must be a sterile, able to be prepped for surgery, and accessible by plane or helicopter.
Personas:
Surgeon (Primary User)
Dr. Pham, 56
Dr. Pham has been a surgeon for over 20 years and loves his job despite the
stress and unpredictable working hours. He is looking forward to retirement,
but is hoping to see the use of printed kidneys come into mainstream prior to
leaving. He stays up to date with the current methods, but it is challenging
given his workload at a busy NYC hospital. Between meeting new patients,
assessing their candidacy for a transplant, and performing the actual
transplants and follow-ups, there is little time left for important mentoring of
new surgeons and workshops in new technologies. Just last week, he had back-to-back surgeries that he
conducted without sleeping in the middle. It is a chaotic schedule at times, but you have to work when
the organ becomes available.
Variables: experienced; works in stressful, fast-paced environment; works on very little sleep; likes to
learn/improve skills
Source: http://www.ehow.com/how_4515356_become-organ-transplant-surgeon.html
Source: http://careers.stateuniversity.com/pages/7984/Transplant-Surgeon.html
CT Technologist (Primary User)
Linda, 38
Linda is an accredited radiologist with her Associates Degree. She enjoyed her
imaging class and is excited about getting further certifications for
manipulating the imagery. She is trained in anatomy and physics, and has a lot
of hands on experience with the tools that allow her to apply that knowledge
for reading scans, but not as much for updating imagery. She is used to
viewing “slices” of the scan, and as long as the tool shows views in that same
slice format, she’s confident that she’ll be comfortable manipulating the
images based on the directions given by the doctors. It is an extra level of responsibility, but with proper
training on the new tools, she’s up for the challenge.
Variables: limited experience outside of comfort zone; procedural – likes same routine; open to learning
new skills; confident with training; has only had read only responsibility – not update or changing scans
Source: http://education-portal.com/cat_scan_technologist.html
Patient (Secondary User)
Glenn, 53
Glenn is an independent IT consultant who lives in Northern Westchester, a
suburb of New York City. Glenn has made a successful career for himself
getting to know his clients and their needs and producing solutions that are
based on a combination of research and creativity. He loves what he does for a
living. Glenn lives alone, but enjoys the benefits of city life – late nights walking
the streets of the city, taking in the sights and scenes. Recently, Glenn has
become more homebound, as he is experiencing kidney failure. He does not
have anyone with whom he is close enough to ask to be a donor, so he has been on a waiting list for a
new organ for about 3 months. Glenn has heard about a new process for organ transplants called 3D
printing that he’d like to learn more about. Given his background, he is a big advocate for advances in
technology, but he is also anxious about the risks involved with the procedure and the after effects of
the recovery process.
Variables: Zest for life (active); independent – doesn’t want to live on dialysis; near a large city; trying to
stay healthy (walking around town); wants to be informed - doesn’t like to dive into anything without
having all of the information first
Source: http://www.unos.org/
Methods for gathering Data
We focused primarily on educating ourselves about both the current state of organ transplants in the
US, as well as the breaking technology that is becoming available. We began our investigation at
UNOS.org and learned that there are currently over 127K people waiting for transplants in the US. Of
those, the vast majority (80%) are specifically waiting for kidneys. Additional reading explained
simplified versions of the transplant process, as well as the cutting edge technology in the field. A video
of the 2011 TED talk by Dr Anthony Atala explained how 3D printing is already occurring using inkjet
printers that lay cells, rather than ink, on a platform to build kidneys.
We did not discuss our understanding of medical or technical knowledge with any experts in the field,
but rather relied on websites and video to learn about the current environment, advances, and the
people involved. We originally thought the idea of printing organs to be slightly extreme, and were
pleasantly surprised to learn that this is ongoing research. While still years away from being functional,
the technology is much closer than we originally imagined.
Source: http://www.unos.org/
Source: http://www.ted.com/talks/anthony_atala_printing_a_human_kidney.html