INTRODUCTION
Three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting is a revolutionary tissue engineering method
in which objects are made by fusing or depositing materials such as non-organic materials
or even living cells in layers to produce a 3D object (Schubert, 2014). Medical
applications for 3D printing are expanding rapidly and are expected to revolutionize
healthcare. Medical uses for 3D printing, both actual and potential, can be organized into
several broad categories, including tissue and organ fabrication, creation of customized
prosthetics and anatomical models, pharmaceutical research regarding drug dosage forms,
and organ transplantation. The application of 3D printing in medicine can provide many
benefits including the customization and personalization of medical drugs and equipment,
time and cost-effectiveness and increased productivity for mass production. The potential
of 3D printing in medicine is limitless and yet still unexplorable (Mertz et al., 2013).
Organ shortage is the greatest challenge facing the field of organ transplantation
today and it becomes an ever-present obstacle for transplant medicine. Heart
transplantation is the highest shortage compared to waiting list among the donor organs.
More than 100,000 hearts were transplanted for last decades and its number raises for last
5 consecutive years. While the number of organs is in shortage, the cost of a transplanted
organ is also high. The cost for organ transplants ranges anywhere from 250,000 dollars
to over 1 million dollars (Stehlik et al., 2012). Another reason for extreme costs is
contributed to the amount of time and care that must go into the transplant organ. While
the cost is high, healthcare and government cover much of these costs, which make it to
be a huge national financial burden.
Moreover, 3D bioprinting tissue enginering of whole functional organs is seen as
the main hope to resolve these issues that will be a major advancement in the field over
the next generation. The potential benefits of bio-printing organs are vast; the demand for
transplant organs significantly outweighs the number of available organs. By increasing
the number of available organs, this demand could be met. Additionally, a patient’s body
can reject donated organs. 3D printed organs can be based on a patient’s own cells, which
can be cultured and could potentially reduce the risk of rejection during transplantation.
This would not only improve patient outcomes, but also reduce the financial burden on
healthcare and government' services providing care (Mertz et al., 2013).
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