Cancer survivor gets his face and life back, thanks to 3D printing

A restaurant manager who lost half his face to an aggressive tumor can now face the world again, after doctors 3D-printed him a prosthetic replacement.

 

Eric Moger, 60, may be the beneficiary of the first 3D-printing procedure of its kind in the United Kingdom, the UK's The Telegraph reported.

 

“I was amazed at the way it looks ... Before I used to have to hold my hand up to my jaw to keep my face still so I could talk properly and I would have liquid running out the side of my face if I tried to drink. When I had that first glass of water wearing the prosthetic face, nothing came out – it was amazing,” said Moger, who lives in Waltham Abbey in Essex with his fiancée.

 

Until the 3D-printing-based surgery, he had to "eat" and drink via a tube directly into his stomach.

 

Plastic surgery had failed because of the chemotherapy and radiotherapy he underwent.

 

In 2009, doctors had discovered an aggressive tumor beneath the skin of Moger's face. The tumor was the size of a tennis ball, the report said.

 

Emergency surgery was able to remove the tumor but left Moger without his left eye, cheek bone and most of his jaw. Plastic reconstruction

 

Led by dental surgeon and implant expert Andrew Dawood, surgeons worked to reconstruct his left face by scanning what was left of his skull and using computers to recreate his face.

 

Dawood had dabbled in 3D printing to produce replicas of his patient’s jaw bones so he could practice surgical procedures.

 

The printer they used would build up nylon plastic layer by layer to produce the needed parts.

 

Screw-like rods were surgically implanted into the remaining bone on the right side of Moger’s face to secure the scaffold.

 

A plastic plate was created to help form a seal at the top of his mouth so he can eat and drink again.

 

Return to a normal life

 

For Moger's fiancee Karen Hunger, The Telegraph's report said the new face raised hopes they can soon return to a normal life.

 

“The first time I saw him after the surgery it was a big shock. You get used to seeing the whole person, but suddenly he had a big hole where other things should have been. He does wonder why I am still here and want to get married to him, but when you love someone you love all of them," she said.

 

“Now he has got the prosthesis, it looks so lifelike. I don’t know how they have done it but it really does look like him. When he puts it in, he has his whole face back. We have been in limbo for such a long time now, so we are hoping to get some sort of life back,” she added.

 

For his part, Moger —who has two daughters and three grandchildren— can resume planning his wedding, something he had been doing before the tumor was discovered.

 

He added he will get new teeth fitted so he can chew again/

 

“Now I have a new face for the wedding I can restart my life after having it on hold for four and a half years,” he said.

 

Future plans

 

As for Dawood, he hopes to develop new techniques to print a silicon mask to help speed up the process and allow patients to have quick access to replacements.

 

“It would mean we could produce different types of prosthesis for people, like one with a tan for when they go on holiday, but we are not there yet,” he said. — TJD, GMA News