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The New Face Lift
RiotXIX writes to tell us that US surgeons plan on moving forward with their newest experimental medical practice, a face transplant. Doctors have already succeeded in making this practice a reality with cadavers donated for medical research and will soon begin interviewing a shortlist of patients to determine who, if anyone, will be first up for this procedure. From the article: 'The chance it will work is around 50% and experts have expressed safety and ethical concerns about the procedure. The recipient would have to take powerful anti-rejection drugs for life, which carry considerable long-term health risks, says the Royal College of Surgeons of England, which formed a working party to look at the issue earlier this year.'
Face/Off was about the worst movie ever. What makes people think the reality will be any better?
I want Cowboy Neal's face, there's room to grow into it.
Trolling is a art,
I saw a movie about this once where one guy takes his face/off and changes it with another guy who also takes his face/off. Anyway, they end up chasing each other around for a while and eventually face/off to fight.
I think it was called "Two Guys that Traded Faces".
if Brad Pitt is a donor? I could really use the sex.
WHAT THE HELL? Then I thought "oh, okay, it's april fools." Then I remembered that no, it wasn't, and it was just National Talk-Like-A-Pirate-Day. I'd be a little weirded out if someone started walking around with my dead wife's face. But that's just me.
...science useful for the slashdot masses.
What? You know you guys are ugly as sin, admit it!
(hey it's a joke!)
The summary doesn't make this clear, but this procedure is intended only for severely disfigured people due to burn scars and such.
The possible side effects are pretty scary, though. My favorite quote is from the CNN Article:
And I used to think that anal leakage was a scary side effect, that's nothing comparing to a soughing face! Thank god I'm not in a position for now where I have to make a decision like that, but it sure is a high price to pay for looking "normal" again.
Michael Jackson had this done years ago.
I have the feeling that someone that has had a large part of their face burned off in a bad fire isn't going to be too worried about having to take drugs for the rest of their lives. Ethical? Ask the people who need this kind of surgery if THEY think it's ethical.
That sounds a bit cruel, maybe they just need to drink a lot instead.
--- I wish I could hear the soundtrack to my life. That way I'd know when to duck.
How does this go with ID-Theft? Yup.. that's me.. see I look like me in this ID.... eeek!
I think that it would be more responsible to first try this procedure on animals, like monkeys or pigs. For instance, maybe they could transplant a pig's face to a monkey. They might even market these to insane rich people as "exotic pets."
Another idea I had that would have a similar market is cosmetic surgery for dogs.
Update: Just on a whim I googled "cosmetic surgery for dogs" and found this. I'm gonna go throw up now.
Arrrrr!
"Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus."
I suspect this procedure would be great for people who have had extreme burns to their face.
One thing to note are the anti-rejection drugs. My uncle whose kidneys both failed, had to get one from my father in the early 90's (91 i think) and had to take anti-rejection drugs. Well, the drugs eventually gave him colon cancer (approx. 10 years of heavy use) and passed away 2 years ago. But, without the kidney transplant he would have never made it past 1992.
It will be a trade off for these people.. potential to live a long life disfigured or a shorted life bearing a new face. Tough call?
MrJynx
. . . So can I take those and get laid every time I hit on a girl?
i don't care
It is probably difficult to comprehend the impact major facial disfigurement can have on a person.
Doctors have already succeeded in making this practice a reality with cadavers
Let me get this straight. Doctors have "succeeded" in attaching one dead guys face to another dead guys skull. No problems with rejection, I take it. And the recipient hardly looked any worse than before the transplant, I mean, considering the bastards were dead, I'm guessing the failure rate was not very low.
Anybody want a peanut?
A really Brave New World.
The lessons of history teach us - if they teach us anything - that nobody learns the lessons that history teaches us.
It puts the lotion on its skin...
Shades of Grayden
The recipient would have to take powerful anti-rejection drugs
As far as rejection goes, I've heard there have been a good progress with transplanting pig's organs instead, so why don't we... Oops, never mind
bad joke, bad joke
"You mortals are so obtuse." -Q
Wired quotes a release-form the recipient must sign:
Your face will be removed and replaced with one donated from a cadaver, matched for tissue type, age, sex and skin color. Surgery should last 8 to 10 hours; the hospital stay, 10 to 14 days. Complications could include infections that turn your new face black and require a second transplant or reconstruction with skin grafts. Drugs to prevent rejection will be needed lifelong, and they raise the risk of kidney damage and cancer. After the transplant you might feel remorse, disappointment, or grief or guilt toward the donor. The clinic will try to shield your identity, but the press likely will discover it.
No free lunch...
Seeing bad movies only encourages them. Watch responsibly
Transplanting organs and even external body parts has been an ongoing practice for quite some time. Clearly, they are making small improvements as time goes by and a variety of details have been added as well. But I have to hope there isn't too much research being done into this.
... it goes without saying. And I also recognize the fundamental expansion of knowledge of human anatomy and how it works is also a worthy benefit of the activities discussed in face transplant technologies.)
In my mind (which is a weird place to be at times) I think the future of medical technology is ultimately in regeneration of damaged or missing tissue. In previous medical articles mentioned here, stem cell research has already enabled paralyzed people to walk again and other improvements are just around the corner I'm sure. In addition to that, the research where genetic manipulation of rats have resulted in entire body parts regenerating after having them removed.
Ultimately, this is advanced forms of healing which is where almost everything in the way of research should be directed, in my opinion, since healing is what the medical practice is all about.
(And yes, I recognize the need for disease and cancer research as well
And on an asside, replacing a face will not make one person look like another. For that, you'd have to manipulate the bones under the skin and muscle to really make modifications that make a difference.
I guess the word "faceplant" no longer solely refers to me tripping while going upstairs/while going downstairs/walking outside/walking around in my dorm room.
I worked (very briefly) with a guy that had had "reconstruction" over 100% of his face from 3rd degree burns. In his case:
successful "reconstruction" = "no longer oozing."
He had no lips, and only kind of had eyelids, he had to constantly roll his eyes to keep them lubed. No nose, just one deformed hole in the front of his head. He was, in a word, hideous. Not his fault. He was a good guy. But his quality of life was in the toilet. This was in the late 1990s, so maybe they're a little better now, but if they can do a complete replacement - more power to them. I would be happy to be a donor once I'm gone. They already get my liver, heart, and eyes. If someone can use this ugly mug, they're welcome to it.
Have you ever known a burn victim?
Skin grafts do not do very much. I think that what they do is provide enough temporary covering to allow scar tissue to grow in place anyways. And, besides, the scar tissue that does grow is not all that flexible at all, either.
The "face transplant" only involves taking off the dermal layers of the face, no facial muscles (dermis, epidermis and subcutaneous layer).
They are looking for recipients that have not suffered too much muscle or nerve damage, and still have a good amount of the blood supply available (obviously). Did you not read the article?
If there ever was a legitimate cosmetic surgery, this is one.
Who would trade burn scars for 50% chance of death, likelyhood of chronic pain, likelyhood of further disfigurement, and no immune system for the rest of their lives?
Actually an impaired immune system - the drugs just suppress part of it. Still no fun though. (That part goes after cancers and virus-infested-but-functioning tissues, too, among other things...)
What I don't see is why they're replacing the whole skin. Why not take off the scar tissue and replace it with a collagen mask seeded with skin cells? This is done with many burn victims (along with at least one person who lost her whole dermis due to a rare drug reaction).
Perhaps it's because the damage is too deep and they need to replace the nerves, blood vessels, muscles, and other plumbing?
Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way