Luo Songsong

    songsongluo@126.com

    A WOMAN from Jieyang City will keep her arm after a new surgical process performed by the Shenzhen No. 2 People’s Hospital. The surgery was made possible thanks to new 3-D printing techniques.

    Three-fourths of the woman’s shoulder blade had been destroyed when she was diagnosed with cancer in March. Using a 3-D printer, doctors were able to model a custom-made shoulder blade to be used as a replacement.

    It is the first time this type of procedure has been done in southern China.

    “It’s good she got timely treatment. Otherwise the shoulder would need to be amputated and she wouldn’t be able to take care of herself,” said Zhang Shiquan, deputy director of the bone tumor department in Shenzhen No. 2 People’s Hospital. Usually, the shoulder with a tumor would need to be removed and replacing the shoulder blade would be considered too risky.

    To halt the cancer, doctors decided to remove a large part of the woman’s shoulder. Doctors worked with a 3-D printing company and used a CT scan of the patient’s body to create a model of a healthy shoulder blade.

    After printing a copy of the woman’s shoulder, doctors used it as a reference before performing the surgery. The original resin model couldn’t be implanted directly into her body. The hospital sent the model to a factory that manufactured a titanium version.

    The surgery was successful and the patient has left the hospital.

    “With the 3-D model, we can communicate with a patient’s family more easily and the implant will mimic the curves of the patient’s body, eliminating many of the problems that typically accompany the procedure,” said Zeng Tenghui of Shenzhen No. 2 People’s Hospital.

    Last September, the hospital also treated a 7-year-old boy diagnosed with a cervical spine tumor with the help of a 3-D printer. “We are planning to purchase a 3-D printer to help us in such surgeries,” said Zeng.