3D printing technology is contributing to a significant transformation in many different industry spaces today.

From mass manufacturing to healthcare, it's helping to innovate in areas of education, and much more. Great strides continue to be made in advancing this technology and one of the most promising areas is in healthcare. 3D printing is already used to create personalized products, from organ models to prosthetics.

One of the areas that is greatly helping to fuel success in the industry is the pressure to reduce healthcare costs and improve standards, and 3D printing is helping to do that.

The bioprinting market is expected to triple over the next few years, estimated to surpass the $1.33 billion mark by 2021.

There is a global shortage of organs for transplants and those who need one might have to wait years before they get the chance to receive one. It's estimated that about 20 people die every day because they can't get the transplant that they need.

The lack of transplant tissue is credited as being one of the leading causes of death in the US.

3D printing technology could play a big role in producing unique, personalized transplant tissues. Those working in this space believe that we aren't too far off now from being able to create organs from scratch that could be used for transplants. They've already seen success with printed parts of lung, heart, and kidney muscle.

Cosmetics companies are also looking to take advantage of using 3D printing to produce 3D printed skin, this would help them eliminate their need for testing on animals.

And the process ain't cheap. Some of the top machines on the market today for bioprinting cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. Though there are some other cheaper options out there.

Those in the field say that they suspect that within 6 years that we might finally start to see organ bioprinting become a reality, though it might come a lot faster than that.

Johnson & Johnson is said to be so convinced of the potential here for success in the bioprinting arena, that they've already formed partnerships with biotechnology firms and academics interested in the subject. And they aren't the only ones, there will be many others looking to join as well in the future.

Doctors in many different areas have been turning to 3D printers to help them improve their quality of care, by utilizing the technology to make personalized models of their patients.

This has helped them to improve their performance by enabling them to be better prepared before the surgery even starts. The personalized models allow the doctors to map out the procedure with extreme precision and that is going to help them to minimize error.

Researchers are also now looking to use this technology to fabricate tumors that can be used to help research cancer. The tumors that they make are going to be used for pharmaceutical testing; enabling more extensive research without the risk. One of the companies in this space, Cellink, is already well on its way to producing 3D printed noses and ears that are being used for medical and cosmetic research.

The medical industry isn't the only space that 3D printing technology has made its way into, but it's easy to see the vast potential here for it to provide advancement and help to improve overall efficiency. This technology could drastically help to revolutionize surgical aids and help to improve and save many lives.

Pics:
via 3dprintingindustry.com
pixabay

Sources:
https://www.techrepublic.com/article/10-industries-3d-printing-will-disrupt-or-decimate/
http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/3616360
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/jul/30/will-3d-printing-solve-the-organ-transplant-shortage
https://medium.economist.com/printed-human-body-parts-could-soon-be-available-for-transplant-560edcbc6ef3
http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/12/ink-3d-printer-uses-alive-watch-it-action
https://3dprint.com/199654/cellink-3d-printing-tumors/
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2016/01/26/toddler-gets-world-first-adult-kidney-transplant-using-3d-printi/
https://3dprint.com/199654/cellink-3d-printing-tumors/
https://3dprint.com/198233/wyss-institute-organ-engineering/
https://www.nibib.nih.gov/news-events/newsroom/unique-3d-printer-creates-realistic-model-patient-prostate-aims-vastly-improve
http://www.machinedesign.com/3d-printing/look-future-medical-3d-printing-part-1
https://www.designnews.com/materials-assembly/artificial-organ-models-3d-printed-lifelike-characteristics/172702805158041

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