"About A Boy: 3D Printed Heart Model Saves Young Life"

http://www.forbes.com/sites/tjmccue/2014/02/26/about-a-boy-3d-printed-heart-model-saves-young-life

"'If a picture is worth 1,000 words, then a model is worth 1,000 pictures,' said Gornet, whose center had already done models of spinal defects and tumors.
Using data from thousands of cross-sections of hospital X-rays, Gornet chose a flexible polymer known as ‘Ninja Flex’ to create a 3-D model. In about 20 hours on a $2,500 printer, he created a replica of the heart at a cost of about $600.
The world of bioprinting is rapidly changing how we think about healthcare and healing. In this young boy’s case, his heart was modeled with 3D software, and that helped surgeons see the problems and create solutions before the critical moments of surgery. Stanford researchers have been reporting progress on modeling the heart and other organs.
Scientists and doctors are teaming up all around the world to print organs, layer by layer, with 3D printing technologies. From 3d printed livers at San Diego-based bio-printing company Organovo to 3d printing skin cells at Wake Forest University, all from your own cells.

The story of this 14 month-old baby is inspiring and amazing, if you pause to think about it. By thinking about other options, surgeon Erle Austin found a way, via a savvy engineering team with a MakerBot 3d printer, to save the child before he started the critical surgery.

Correction: I originally put Erie for Dr. Austin’s first name. His full name is Erle H. Austin III." (Source)

Explore the human heart from the web browser on your touch tablet or mobile phone. Welcome to the world of HTML5. No…http://t.co/oBnhCacDem

— sylvain ordureau (@usefulprogress) March 13, 2014