Doctor Aims to Perform Head Transplant in 2017, Experts Remain Skeptical:
A team of researchers led by an Italian surgeon say they are planning to perform the first human head transplant in 2017 and have even recruited a volunteer, but experts remain skeptical of the experimental procedure.
Dr. Sergio Canavero, director of the Turin Advanced Neuromodulation Group, Turin, Italy, has proposed in two published medical articles that a head transplant is possible, thanks to new technology.
The technology allows for the body to be cooled during surgery and there are new tools that create a cleaner cut on the spinal cord and machines that allow people to be on bypass during surgery.
The team wants to go through with the procedure in December 2017, according to new reports on AFP and Central European News. One surgeon reportedly involved in the procedure, Dr. Ren Xiaoping, said the team will go through with the surgery only if future research supports their plan.