Italian surgeon Sergio Canavero, who recently announced the success of the first in the world, was accused of lying. This was done by his colleague from China, where the experiment took place. The main complaint: the operation was performed not on living people, but on dead bodies. However, the Italian has no doubts about his success.
"A huge step towards transplanting a head into a living person!" - when last week Italian surgeon Sergio Canavero made a statement about the success of scientists from Harbin Medical University, many began to speculate when neurosurgeons would perform the unique operation that has been talked about for so long. But now the Chinese themselves have taken the floor. They recalled that they worked with corpses, and so far they should not be credited with a breakthrough in transplantology, no matter what Professor Canavero says about it.
“We did not transplant a human head. What we performed is a surgical model of human head transplantation,” emphasizes Professor Harbinsky medical university Zhen Xiaoping. - This is all. I believe that instead of saying "successful operation" it is better to say "completed". We have completed Scientific research and scientific experiment."
“He will be like Yuri Gagarin - the whole world will recognize him,” this is what Canavero said about Valery Spiridonov for several years. Russian for a long time was the main symbol of the project for the first human head transplant. Even when it was decided that the first unique operation would be performed on a Chinese person, the programmer from Vladimir continued to assert: sooner or later doctors will be able to successfully transplant the head of a living person, which means Canavero must continue his research.
True, the potential participant in the experiment was always embarrassed by the fact that the neurosurgeon from Italy refused to cooperate with large foundations and universities and did not attract investors. Instead of collaborating with the medical community, the professor preferred to make loud statements. “Even if he performed an operation on a corpse and considers it successful, then talking about it as an achievement of the 21st century is very, very naive,” says the head of the “Striving for Life” movement, Valery Spiridonov. “This is not preparation for a human head transplant.” , simply following in the footsteps of Professor Demikhov or Robert White, whose monkeys lived for 7 days."
Valery believes that in his statement, Professor Zhen simply demonstrates the modesty characteristic of his people and, unlike his Italian colleague, calls a spade a spade. The chief transplantologist of the Ministry of Health agrees with him. According to Sergei Gauthier, the Chinese professor simply told the truth, but also downplayed the merits in the transplantation matter human head It's also not worth it.
“Of course, from the first time only new questions arise that need to be answered, but, nevertheless, what they did and, most importantly, described in their article, I read it, it gives the impression of a thoughtful, methodical approach,” believes Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Chief transplantologist of the Russian Ministry of Health Sergei Gauthier.
What is hidden behind the modest statements of Chinese scientists - a reluctance to talk about failure or a desire to keep an outstanding breakthrough secret - no one can now say. But experts are sure: given how much effort is currently being devoted to this particular project, successful transplant neurosurgeons will announce the human head in the coming years.
Transplantology is a science that is now advancing by leaps and bounds. Experiments related to organ transplants and the cultivation of their artificial analogues cost enormous amounts of money and require years of preparation, but at the same time they are becoming increasingly common. However, the statement of the Italian surgeon puzzled even experienced specialists: Sergio Canavero plans to perform a head transplant from one person to another in the next couple of years and has already found a volunteer for his daring experiment.
Scientific background
Until today, nothing like this operation has ever been carried out. And although more than a million people in the world have undergone transplantation operations of certain organs, it is still difficult to connect such complex systems, how the human head and body has never been solved before. Attempts have been made to carry out similar operations on animals, and this happened quite a long time ago. In the 1950s, Soviet scientist Vladimir Demikhov achieved that a dog lived for several days with two heads: its own and a transplanted one.
Demikhov's two-headed dog
In 1970, in Cleveland, Robert J. White cut off the head of one monkey and sewed it on to another. And although the sewn head came to life, opened its eyes and tried to bite, the sewn creature managed to survive no more than a couple of days: the immune system began to reject the foreign body. The public greeted the experiment quite harshly, but White argued that such an operation could be successfully performed even on humans and tried to advance his theory. In 1982, Professor D. Krieger performed partial brain transplantation in mice, as a result of which seven out of eight experimental subjects were able to continue normal life. In 2002, the Japanese conducted experiments on complete head transplants to rats, and in 2014 the Germans proved that a brain separated by the spinal column can be connected so that over time physical activity the individual is restored completely.
Who and when?
Despite the vagueness of the results of his predecessors, Sergio Canavero is determined. He plans to perform a human head transplant operation as early as 2017. His position is active: he makes many presentations, where he clearly and clearly explains why and under what conditions such an operation can take place and even claim to be successful. His calculations do not seem realistic to everyone, but they inspire many people.
Among them is our compatriot Valery Spiridonov, who decided to put his own head at the disposal of the scientist. Valery lives in Vladimir and works as a programmer. He decided to take such a step because he suffers from an incurable illness: since childhood, he has been susceptible to muscle atrophy caused by the destruction of spinal cord neurons. Werdnig-Hoffman disease is incurable, moreover, those suffering from it rarely live past 20 years. Valery clearly feels irreversible deterioration and hopes that he will live to see the operation, which will give him hope for continuing his life. Those close to him fully and completely support his decision.
Valery Spiridonov - candidate for head transplant
But Valery is not the only candidate for participation in the experiment: there were enough people all over the world who wanted to take on this role. Canavero had already decided that the priority group would be patients with spinal muscular atrophy. Valery Spiridonov and Sergio Canavero have been corresponding for two years, discussing details and risks. Valery is also invited to the USA to a congress of neurosurgeons, where the Italian will present a detailed plan for his risky undertaking.
Why not?
Sergio Canavero is a high-class neurosurgeon; he managed to perform a successful operation, as a result of which motor functions were restored in a person with serious spinal cord damage. He managed to fuse neurons, which no one could do before.
And now he is quite optimistic. While he is looking for funds for his high-profile experiment.
The operation promises to last more than 36 hours, and its main stage will be the process of separating the head and attaching it to a new body. This involves cooling human tissue to 15°C and “gluing” the two parts of the spinal cord together using polyethylene glycol. Vessels, muscles, nerve tissues will be stitched, the spine will be secured. The patient will be placed in an induced coma for a month, and during this time spinal cord will be stimulated by special electrodes. After regaining consciousness, initially he will only feel his face, but the surgeon promises that within a year he will be taught to move.To carry out the operation, it will take more than 11 million dollars, a staff of 100 highly qualified surgeons and other medical personnel. Body donors are expected to be patients with fatal head injuries or those sentenced to death.
Critics and skeptics
Sergio’s colleagues are skeptical; they claim that there is not yet a sufficiently serious theoretical and experimental basis for such an operation, and they call their colleague a “media character.” So the Italian scientist has already received diametrically opposed assessments: from an adventurer and a charlatan to a harbinger of the medicine of the future.
Sergio Canavero - author of a revolutionary idea
A number of experts believe that, provided that a huge variety of all possible risks, details and nuances are taken into account, this operation can be considered technically feasible. Among the main difficulties are the very possibility of restoring the spinal cord, as well as graft-versus-host syndrome, which is expressed in the rejection of the organ by the immune system.
However, many scientists say that they are more “for” than “against”, because even in case of failure, such a project will expand the boundaries of such fields as transplantology, immunology, physiology, etc., and will also raise many questions and will outline ways to solve them.
The Italian’s opponents are not only among scientists: some are alarmed by the ethical component of the experiment. Trying to play God is not only condemned by devotees catholic religion, but also by ordinary citizens who consider such experiments to be an excess of human authority on this earth. It was not for nothing that J. White was under police protection with his family for several years and, as a result, under pressure from the public, he completely covered up his experiments.
Canavero says that he will not go against the wishes of society and in the event of mass protests he will refuse to carry out the operation.
These are common features of the upcoming experiment, and you can judge for yourself how desirable and plausible it is. And in conclusion, we invite you to watch a video report about an unprecedented operation and at the same time admire the hero himself and his interesting presentation about the spinal cord... on bananas.
Sensation: head transplant (video)
Expert: “This is very nice PR!”
Italian surgeon Sergio Canavero performed a human head transplant in China. According to him - successful. Meanwhile, the public is perplexed, because we are talking about a head transplant to a corpse. Why transplant a head into a corpse?
Canavero became famous in Russia after programmer Valery Spiridonov, suffering serious illness, .
Now Canavero has refused this operation. According to Spiridonov, the surgeon received funding specifically in China and specifically for a certain type of experiment...
Russian doctors called the current news about a “successful head transplant” a beautiful PR campaign.
From a PR point of view, this is a very smart move, they clean water adventurers,” Dmitry Suslov, head of the laboratory of experimental surgery at the Pavlov State Medical University of St. Petersburg, told MK. “In fact, the operation that Canavero performed was a training presented as a world sensation.
The expert said that similar training operations are carried out by all transplant surgeries in any country in the world that can boast of success in this field. the most complex area medicine. Moreover, it is mainly young doctors who practice on corpses, who are still afraid to let near a living body.
“We can’t talk about any success here,” Suslov noted. “They took a dead head and sewed it to a dead body.” The only thing we can talk about here is that they worked accurately and sewed it in a purely technically competent manner.
Russian doctors also do not dare talk about any discoveries during the operation. Most of the actions that are needed to sew a head to a body should be perfected to the point of automaticity by any self-respecting surgeon. Vascular suture Every physician who performs operations on the heart and blood vessels must do this practically with his eyes closed. Sutures on large nerves are for neurosurgeons.
As for the past “merits” of the Canavero team, which was also noisily discussed by the whole world - transplanting a head to a monkey, here the doctors also just shake their heads skeptically. According to them, maintaining life in the severed head of an animal is an experiment from the beginning of the last century. The then researchers in white coats were very good at such manipulations.
However, our transplantology still left a small chance of victory in the future for foreign adventurers. Theoretically, it is possible to transplant a head to a living person. And there is even a chance that after the operation both the head and the rest of the body will function normally. But to do this, you will have to make a real scientific breakthrough - learn how to fuse spinal cord neurons.
If someone manages to do this, it will be a Nobel Prize,” says Suslov, “ Great amount people with spinal injuries will have a chance to get back on their feet and live a full life. But so far such experiments have only been carried out on rats. And on our this moment there is only a partial understanding of how this should be done.
Heated discussion in scientific world. The statement of an Italian surgeon was called a sensation - he is going to transplant a new body into a person. A programmer from Russia could become his patient. Valery Spiridonov explained: for him this is a chance to live. But the motives of Dr. Canavero are now being debated in different countries: Scientific breakthrough or deception and an attempt to make big money?
His head will be transplanted onto someone else's body. Vladimir Spiridonov, a Russian programmer, gave consent to the Italian surgeon for a unique and already sensational operation. Transplantation of not a single organ, but a whole human body - no one in the world has ever done this. Deadly diagnosis - congenital spinal muscle atrophy- pushes Vladimir to take a risky step. His muscles and skeleton stopped developing in early childhood. People with this diagnosis rarely live longer than 20 years. Vladimir is already 30. The disease is progressing. He is sure his only chance is surgery.
It is expected that the patient's head and his future donor body will be greatly cooled. This will extend the life of tissues without oxygen. First, the spinal cord will be connected with a special glue - polyethylene glycol. It will cause the growth of nerve endings, the surgeon assures. Afterwards, the vessels and muscles will be sewn together and the spine will be secured. And the patient will be put into a coma for almost a month to avoid any movement. Special electrodes will meanwhile stimulate the spinal cord.
The body donor will be a person who has suffered from clinical death or a criminal sentenced to death. The cost of the project is 11 million dollars.
"An adventurous claim that is not supported by anything. A person who could do this would have to claim that he has learned to restore the spinal cord. If he had made that claim, I am sure he would have received Nobel Prize", says A. Khubutia, director of the Sklifosovsky Research Institute of Emergency Medicine.
The surgeon is confident in the success of the operation. He is already making presentations about his promising and expensive project. And not only for colleagues. Even for ordinary people. These reports are almost a show: the surgeon himself is on stage in dim lighting, and the scientific terms are understandable to everyone.
“In traditional neurology, it is accepted: impulses from the brain are transmitted to the spinal cord. I would call it a highway. Its fibers are like spaghetti. “Spaghetti” comes into contact with cells - the cells make us move. So, everything works differently. I’ll tell you tell you about your program - and the world will change forever,” he says.
The world will change forever for Vladimir, the Italian doctor predicts. Allegedly, immediately after waking up, the patient will only feel the face. But physical therapy will get him back on his feet within a year.
Russian doctors talk about much deeper nuances in science - transplantology. For example, at least about the compatibility of the patient and the donor.
Sensational transplants are becoming increasingly common medical practice. In 2002, Boston doctors transplanted two hands to a patient. The year before, another patient was given someone else's face. The operation lasted 15 hours. A woman needed a transplant after an attack - her jealous husband doused her with acid. Nose, lips transplanted facial muscles, part of the neck and even facial nerves.
Around the same time, a similar operation was carried out in Poland. Due to the swelling on her face, the girl had difficulty chewing, swallowing and even speaking. She was operated on for almost a day. Successfully.
Unique footage of one of the latest surgical victories. In Sweden, doctors for the first time in the world transplanted a uterus from a mother to her daughter. And two years later they delivered the girl who had been operated on. The child was born premature, but healthy. The surgeons admitted that despite the success, the operation would not become routine soon: it took them 13 years to prepare.
But in order to connect the whole body to the head, this has so far only been done on animals. It is known that the operated monkey with a new body lived only a few days. The first experiments were carried out on dogs back in the Soviet Union. Physiologist Sergei Bryukhonenko worked on a heart-lung machine. And he created it. This is not just footage from a nightmare movie - it's scientific evidence. Hearts in jars are pounding, lungs are breathing. But the most impressive thing is the head. After the operation, the dog remained not only alive, but also conscious.
Today an Italian surgeon declares that he is ready to perform the operation, but final decision- for the public. If they are against it, he will abandon the main experiment of his life. Another loud statement from a controversial medical project.
Surely many remember the Italian neurosurgeon Sergio Canavero, who intended to carry out no less than a human head transplant. Since then, it seemed that nothing new had happened other than statements, but, as it turned out, all this time Mr. Canavero was preparing not only for a head transplant operation, but also for a larger-scale brain transplant procedure.
In addition to the ambitious plan, the first patient, Sergio, has also changed. Previously, the first patient was supposed to be Russian Valery Spiridonov, diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy, but now the right to be the first has passed to a Chinese resident, whose name has not yet been announced. Chinese colleague Sergio Shaoping Ren also takes part in the conduct and preparation for the operation, and the choice of the patient will depend on the availability of a compatible donor.
The location of the operation has also changed: if previously the transplantation was planned to be carried out in Germany or the UK, now the operation is being prepared on the territory of Harbin medical center. Despite the still fantastic claims about the future success of this manipulation, a group of scientists have already managed to successfully transplant the head of one rat to the body and head of a second, using the bloodstream of another rodent. With this, surgeons protected rats from blood loss and hypothermia. However, the donor rat clearly felt pain.
The unique operation is planned for December this year. And if the operation is successful, the Italian will begin working towards a brain transplant. According to the surgeon, on the one hand, this will be a less difficult task, since in this case it will not be necessary to transplant all the vessels, tendons, muscles and nerves. On the other hand, problems of a different nature may arise with the brain; for example, it is unknown how the human brain will react to the “replacement” of the body; in addition, the skull will have a different configuration.
For his purposes, Sergio Canavero is going to use the brains of people who have subjected their bodies to cryo-freezing. According to the specialist, perhaps as early as 2018, the first frozen patients will be able to return to life.
