Vinmec Healthcare System in Vietnam has achieved a medical milestone by efficiently implanting the world’s first totally 3D-printed titanium femur in an eight-year-old osteosarcoma affected person. The process, carried out at Vinmec Instances Metropolis Worldwide Hospital, not solely preserved the kid’s limb and mobility but in addition establishes a brand new customary for pediatric orthopedic oncology remedy.
This landmark case represents the primary documented occasion of a whole femur alternative utilizing a personalized 3D-printed implant in a affected person this younger, marking a big development in each surgical innovation and Vietnam’s rising function in precision drugs.
Pioneering software in pediatric oncology
Conventional whole femur replacements have traditionally relied on standard implant techniques with restricted customization choices. In line with medical literature within the U.S. Nationwide Library of Drugs, no earlier instances exist of totally 3D-printed or patient-specific femoral implants in pediatric functions. This breakthrough required creating fully new approaches to deal with the distinctive challenges of pediatric bone most cancers remedy.
The customized implant was designed and manufactured fully in Vietnam by biomedical engineers at VinUni’s Biomedical 3D Lab. The workforce created the prosthetic based mostly on detailed evaluation of the kid’s particular anatomy and included projections for future progress—a vital consideration in pediatric orthopedics that standard implants can’t tackle.
“The surgical procedure represented a breakthrough in complicated methods and demonstrated the energy of our multidisciplinary collaboration,” mentioned Prof. Dr. Tran Trung Dung, Director of the Orthopedic Council at Vinmec.
This achievement locations Vietnam on the forefront of a regional motion towards self-reliant, precision healthcare. Whereas neighboring nations like Singapore and Malaysia have begun integrating 3D printing into surgical workflows, this marks the primary biomedical gadget totally designed and produced in Vietnam for scientific software of this complexity.
Engineering for progress: A modular titanium answer
The event course of concerned intensive multidisciplinary collaboration between orthopedic surgeons, oncologists, radiologists, and pharmacists over a number of months of case critiques. The remedy adopted a fastidiously deliberate two-stage strategy: surgeons first eliminated the tumor and inserted a short lived cement graft in January 2024, permitting the affected person time to recuperate from most cancers remedy earlier than continuing with the definitive reconstruction.
In Could 2025, as soon as the affected person had totally recovered and the most cancers remedy was full, the medical workforce carried out the second surgical procedure to put in the personalized titanium femur. The timing proved essential, because it allowed the engineering workforce enough time to good the implant design whereas guaranteeing the affected person’s total well being was optimized for the complicated process.
“We contacted overseas producers, however none had an answer that met the kid’s distinctive wants,” defined Dr. Tran Duc Thanh, who was straight concerned within the operation. “Self-manufacturing allowed us to behave shortly and supply an answer that aligns with the way forward for Vietnamese drugs.”
The femur design incorporates modular engineering rules particularly to accommodate the kid’s progress over time—an important innovation in pediatric orthopedic oncology the place standard implants usually require a number of alternative surgical procedures as youngsters develop.
Southeast Asia’s rising healthcare innovation hub
This case exemplifies Southeast Asia’s quickly rising funding in localized, patient-specific healthcare options. The success demonstrates how regional innovation facilities can ship world-class medical outcomes whereas constructing home capabilities in superior manufacturing.
In line with Metatech Insights, the Asia-Pacific 3D printing healthcare sector will expertise dramatic enlargement, rising from $1.04 billion in 2025 to $6.7 billion by 2035. This progress is pushed by growing demand for customized care options and substantial regional investments in analysis and growth infrastructure.
Vinmec’s achievement illustrates the broader potential of 3D printing expertise to ship cost-effective, extremely complicated medical options with out dependence on abroad suppliers. Extra considerably, it demonstrates that cutting-edge surgical innovation is not concentrated completely in Western medical establishments, however is rising from healthcare techniques throughout the creating world.
A narrative of willpower and hope
Behind this scientific milestone lies a profoundly human story of maternal willpower and medical perseverance. When confronted with the preliminary suggestion of amputation following chemotherapy, the kid’s mom refused to simply accept limb loss as the one possibility. Her unwavering advocacy led the medical workforce to pursue a extra superior, albeit considerably tougher, different remedy strategy.
The choice to try this unprecedented process required not solely technical innovation but in addition appreciable braveness from each the medical workforce and the household. The profitable consequence validates the significance of exploring each potential possibility earlier than accepting limitations, notably in pediatric instances the place high quality of life issues lengthen throughout many years.
At present, her son walks once more—on a femur designed and manufactured in Vietnam, personalized particularly for his anatomy and engineered to develop with him. This achievement represents not only a medical success, however a logo of how willpower, innovation, and collaborative experience can overcome seemingly unimaginable challenges in fashionable healthcare.
