The 3D honeycomb-shaped titanium alloy piece which is successfully transplanted into the leg of a patient suffering from bone cancer from Quang Ngai by HCM City's Cho Ray Hospital. (Photo: VNA)HCM City (VNA) - Doctors at Cho Ray Hospital in HCM City successfully performed surgery to replace a segment of tibia in the leg of a patient suffering from bone cancer with a 3D honeycomb-shaped titanium alloy piece.
According to Le Van Tuan, head of the orthopaedic trauma department at the hospital, this is a completely new technique and was successfully applied for the first time at Cho Ray Hospital in particular and in Vietnam in general.
In 2019, a 33-year-old man from central Quang Ngai province had surgery at the hospital to remove a tumour growing on his left tibia, which resulted in him having limited movement in the knee. The surgery, however, left him with a gap of about 11cm in the tibia.
To avoid any risk and inconvenience from conventional surgery, doctors decided to use a 3D honeycomb-shaped titanium alloy piece to replace the tibial segment.
Just four days after surgery, the patient was able to stand and practice walking. He is expected to be able to walk normally after 5-6 months.
Tuan said that the advantage of this technology is that the piece is created to fit into the missing bone.
The “honeycomb” holes also lead bone cells to multiply and develop, gradually turning the piece into a part of the body that is not rejected, as is usually the case with metals, he added./.
VNA
