This story makes me think of Futurama….
A Russian man named Valery Spiridonov has volunteered to be the first for a human head transplant surgical procedure. The procedure, which could cost up to $100 million dollars, is planned to take place in early 2017.
Curious how this will happen?
According to CBSnews.com…
First, like with other organ transplants, he and his team would need a suitable donor. This procedure would require a body from a young brain-dead male patient.
Once permission from the family is granted, the surgeons would set the body up for surgical decapitation.
At the same time, Spiridonov would be brought in and another surgical team would cool his body to 50 degrees Fahrenheit. This would delay tissue death in the brain for about an hour, meaning the surgeons would need to work quickly.
Using a transparent diamond blade, they would then remove both patients’ heads from their bodies, ultimately severing their spinal cords at the same time.
A custom-made crane would be used to shift Spiridonov’s head – hanging by Velcro straps – onto the donor body’s neck. The two ends of the spinal cord would then be fused together with a chemical called polyethylene glycol, or PEG, which has been shown to promote regrowth of cells that make up the spinal cord.
The muscles and blood supply from the donor body would then be joined with Spiridonov’s head, and he would be kept in a coma for three to four weeks to prevent movement as he healed. Implanted electrodes would be used to stimulate the spinal cord to strengthen new nerve connections.
There are saying it will take around 80 surgeons to complete the task.
The procedure isn’t without its controversy with some doctors calling it bad science and unethical.
You can read more about it HERE.
-zigz