Innovation

Bioengineers promise to 3D-print human hearts in a decade

Scientists in Kentucky predict that they’ll be able to use 3D printer technology to create a bioficial human heart in only ten years’ time.

Dr. Stuart Williams is the director of the Cardiovascular Innovation Institute in downtown Louisville, Kentucky, and he thinks his office is only a decade away from what could be one of the biggest medical marvels ever.

Heart disease is the number one killer in the United States and claims around 1 million lives annually, according to recent studies. Dr. Williams has witnessed both of his parents pass away due to the disease, and by 2020 it is expected to be the biggest life-taker on Earth. By then, however, Williams expects to be near the breakthrough point with regards to his most ambitious endeavor yet.

Just as 3D printers have let anyone from hobbyists to industrial designers manufacture objects as of late, Williams says he wants to use that same technology to replicate the most critical of body parts. Designers have already managed to show that 3D printers are capable of churning out fully-functioning firearms, and scientists have already explored with making organs, including a liver and an ear, with that technology. Williams, however, wants to be able to bring to life something with a beat.

In 2007 Williams joined the rank of the Cardiovascular Innovation Institute, a joint collaboration between the city’s Jewish Hospital and the University of Louisville, and once there he patented the first method in the world for using fat-derived stem cells for therapeutic use. He’s again exploring what exactly cells are capable of, and could be onto something huge. The clinical trials are already being performed on bioficial blood vessels, and Williams believes the 2023 deadline is still within reach.