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Personalized bone implants: a project that seeks support from the public and private sectors to benefit low-income patients

Personalized bone implants: a project that seeks support from the public and private sectors to benefit low-income patients

One year after a 3D-printed prosthesis was implanted in his head, Kevin Mejía’s life remains stable.

He is a patient who survived cancer and after receiving help from the Salesian Polytechnic University (UPS) and the Society to Fight Cancer (Solca) continues to dream of resuming his studies and becoming a great chef.

Skull cancer caused Kevin damage that seemed irreversible and with a clearly visible physical effect, such as a hole in the head.

They performed four operations on him and placed a first prosthesis that, according to his father, Marco Mejía, hurt him and, for this reason, he had to remove it.

This story had a positive turn when he found out that Kevin was among the thirteen beneficiaries of the Personalized Bone Implants project, carried out between the University and Solca.

Marco said he is a man of faith and seeing one of his three children walking and helping around the house reaffirmed his belief in God, more so because “if it weren’t for the scars, no one would notice that he had four surgeries.”

After Kevin’s medical studies, it was decided to put the 3D printed prosthesis in the laboratories of this institution, with a raw material called polymethylmethacrylate, which so far has not resulted in decay or major conditions.

UPS, academic excellence supported by technology

With this testimony, the UPS of Cuenca wants to advance to a second level, said Efrén Vásquez, a researcher at the higher center and head of the personalized prosthesis project, which basically consists of applying a material with greater biocompatibility, which guarantees a better adaptation of this ” Strange object”.

The ones applied the first time are known technically as polymethyl methacrylate, but now they want to use polymers called polyether ether ketone and polyether ketone ketone, which must be imported because they are not available on the local market.

Paul Torres, academic researcher, added that these supplies have several advantages, including that they adhere firmly to the skin without forming calluses and, above all, that they have a greater degree of compatibility with tissues.

At UPS they use 3D technology to create custom prostheses for cancer patients. His goal in this 2022 is to support more people suffering from this disease. Photo: Johnny Guambana

These types of procedures are performed in private institutions in the country and the cost is very high, often inaccessible to patients.

For this reason, the UPS technicians called on public and private institutions to support this social project that, unlike private medical centers, has several benefits: the technology developed is personalized for each patient based on elements such as the intervention, execution, manufacture and monitoring of these pieces, which -in addition- are in constant innovation, because they are linked to careers in health and mechanical sciences, such as Biomedicine or Mechanical Engineering.

Solca doubles beds and enlarges spaces to attend to the increase in referrals of cancer patients from IESS and MSP hospitals

In addition, as a study center, they assured that they are ready to move forward, because they invested in a medical-level three-dimensional printer suitable for a process known as “exploiting the materials,” revealed Efrén Vásquez.

This, in addition to everything, would help to lower the cost of the intervention, because only the price of the material should be covered.

The recovery of Kevin and the other patients is a boost for the researchers. And although he has not yet rejoined the activities of a young man his age, Kevin is independent at home despite his delicate situation.

For him, his family was a support to deal with the disease, the treatment and the surgeries. He recommended “not to be silent” in the face of any sign or symptom: “It is ugly to go through this type of procedure, but it is good to know that we are alive,” the patient explained. (YO)

Source: Eluniverso

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