Medical science has seen a lot of progress over the last century as a result of which our lives have become so much better. Not only has our life expectancy increased from a world average of around 50 in the early 20th century, to the current average of 75, but our overall quality of life has increased as well.
Diseases that used to be a death sentence for people back then are now cured very easily and in some cases are extinct altogether. Overtime, countless discoveries and inventions led to a world that was better equipped to save and sustain human lives.
Also, thanks to the arrival of computers, people all over the world were able to collaborate to form a sort of a synergy with led to major breakthroughs throughout the last century. Doctors and scientists were no longer bound by geography so that the whole world could benefit from their findings.
Granted, we still have loads of problems to solve and there are still a lot of things we do not understand but the smartest people in the world are continuously working towards that goal. Apart from finding cures to diseases like cancer and HIV, we still have to find a viable solution to replace our damaged organs which is what we are going to talk about today.
Organ Transplants
There are several vital organs in our bodies without which we cannot survive. Organs like heart, pancreas, stomach, brain, intestines and others perform specialised functions are all essential for our survival.
These organs can get damaged due to various reasons like different diseases or accidents. When that happens, there is no option but to replace those organs with healthy ones. Thankfully millions of people donate their organs upon death. These organs find a new home in the bodies of those people.
Organ transplantation has to be one of the greatest achievements of us humans because the task is not easy at all. That is why organ transplantation is one of the most challenging areas of modern medicine.
Till now, we have been successful in transplanting organs like heart, kidneys, liver, lungs, pancreas, intestine and thymus. These cover most of the essential organs of the body but one organ has always been considered impossible to be transplanted. It’s our brain.
Brain Transplant
Brain Transplant is considered impossible by almost everyone, at least with our current technological capabilities. One major problem that is stated with this is the inability of the nerve fibres or tissues to heal properly which is a key step in the brain transplant process.
For a brain transplant to be successful, the brain from the donor needs to be connected with the nerve fibres of the spinal cord of the receiving body and since these nerve tissues are so poor in healing, the process cannot be completed. Also, scarred nerve tissues cannot transmit signals well which is how the brain receives and transmits information to and from the body.
Then there are psychological issues. The problem with identity and learning to use the new body. If achieved, suddenly the brain starts getting signals from all these parts which are totally different than the ones it was used to. There is a high chance that such a procedure could drive the patient insane.
Despite all these problems, one surgeon is planning to conduct the first human head transplant at the end of this year and it’s not just brain transplant but an entire head transplant.
The First Human Head Transplant
Valery Spiridonov on the left and Sergio Canavero on the right
Sergio Canavero is an Italian surgeon and in 2015, he announced that he will be conducting the first human head transplant at the end of 2017. He has also found a willing volunteer names Valery Spiridonov, a Russian man who is suffering from muscular atrophy.
During the procedure, Spriridonov’s head will be cooled to around 12 degrees Celsius. Then the head will be cut from the body and connected to a body of a brain-dead person. The whole procedure is estimated to last 36 hours!
Once the procedure is complete he will be kept in an artificially-induced coma for about a month during which the doctors will try to re-animate the spinal nerves and tissues of the body.
The whole process is so complex and there are so many unknowns that Canavero will be assisted by a team of 100 surgeons along with other medical staff. He predicts that there is a 90% chance that this operation will be successful.
There are so many connections that have to be made between the head and the body that most doctors and surgeons are skeptical of this transplant attempt and so, all eyes will be on the brave surgeon when he finally attempts the first ever human head transplant which if successful, will open up an entirely new era for medical science.