3D printing brain scans could help doctors diagnose and treat brain tumors and has already changed what we know about MS lesions. 

If only we could see into people’s heads. It would likely make communicating a lot easier, and potentially diagnosing brain abnormalities. Instead, doctors are having to make do with the next best thing – 3D printing a replica of a brain scan.

By doing this, doctors can hold the print in their hands. What’s the benefit of this? Hopefully, diagnosing and even treating tumors or blocked arteries more easily. At least, this is the belief of Dr. Darin Okuda.

Already, Okuda has been able to show that 3D printing is effective when it comes to understanding brain lesions in patients with multiple sclerosis. Okuda and his team use MRI scans to patient’s brains to 3D print exact copies of MS lesions.

Usually, doctors use 2D images and scans to diagnose a patient. Okuda told Tech Crunch:

“What you see on plain 2-dimensional views does not give one a clear understanding as to the true shape of the lesion itself… By studying lesions in 3D, we are looking at these findings in an entirely different way, assessing their shape and surface characteristics.”

3D Printing MS Lesions Results in New Information

Using the 3D prints, the researchers worked on differentiating MS lesions and others forms of brain damage. By doing this, they were able to come up with specific features which weren’t obvious from scans. Okuda continues:

“Prior to the release of our work, we were describing multiple sclerosis lesions incorrectly… Lesions from MS are still described as being ‘ovoid’ in shape and ‘well circumscribed’ in character. Based on our 3D work, we know that this is not the case. We were amazed at the complexity of MS lesions and would argue that conventional terms previously used in our field may not be accurate after a review in physical 3D form.”

Okuda’s research proves that 3D prints could make a huge difference in diagnosing patients correctly. Better yet, by providing a cheap 3D print, doctors could also help patients understand their treatment better.

However, currently, 3D printing isn’t widely available in the medical field. To combat this problem, Okuda and his team are now working on developing a VR platform to help patients understand their diagnosis when 3D printing isn’t available.

Want to find out more? You can read Okuda’s work in the Journal of Neuroimaging.

Source: Tech Crunch