How is 3D Printing driving innovation across medicine?

John Kawola, chief executive officer-global operations of Boston Micro Fabrication (BMF), discusses how 3D Printing is driving innovation across medicine.

3D printing continues to grow and change how we innovate across industries. Though the technology can seem like a buzzword to many, over the past 20+ years I’ve seen how 3D printing has expanded the possibilities of innovation and solved industry pain points that have been plaguing companies for years. Today there’s a unique opportunity for expanded applications in the medical technology industry, where there’s often a need for extreme precision that traditional manufacturing isn’t always able to accomplish. Ultra-high resolution parts are often essential to driving innovation and, as parts get smaller, many scientists are utilising 3D printing to help further medical care and life science research across the field of medicine – from drug development to surgical tools and medical devices. 

The magic in the materials 

The materials used in the development process are an important consideration for the medtech industry when planning how to manufacture different parts. Given they need to replicate the environment of the body or may even be used in a medical procedure, there is an enhanced need for biocompatibility and sterility of materials. Materials must be able to elicit the desired biological response, oftentimes trying to mimic the organic bodily response. Biocompatible and sterile materials ensure the appropriate level of biosafety to be used in in vivo applications. 

While an innovation could have positive impacts on a patient, without safe materials it could have little, or even adverse effects on the body. With 3D printing, engineers can work with various materials, customise product design and manufacture on a smaller scale to test biocompatibility. The technology also allows for more flexibility with lower sample runs than traditional manufacturing, which is ideal in the development process.

Advancement across life sciences applications 

Medical procedures rely on tools to help clinicians better understand the patient’s condition. As innovation has advanced the field, these tools have become increasingly high-tech in order to quickly diagnose and address patient problems. In procedures, 3D printed devices can be used where there’s a need for high-precision for micro parts.

The level of precision and size micro 3D printing can achieve is suited for emerging research into new treatment modalities. Immunotherapy is just one area of research turning to the utilisation of micro-scale tools to change how we treat hard-to-treat diseases, like cancer. 

High-precision solutions are also advancing the medical industry in pharmaceutical research and development (R&D). In an area of exciting research, micro 3D printing is aiding the development of microfluidic devices. Devices can be difficult to develop due to the need for very narrow channels that allow fluid to pass through in a specific arrangement, but micro 3D printing solves this challenge with the ability to develop highly accurate distinctive features, which enables a more accurate replication of the human body in a small device.  

These devices have the potential to be used in testing new drugs before entering the clinical trial phase, as the 3D printed devices are a more accurate representation for human biology than traditional models, which can help better predict a human body’s response to drugs being developed. 3D printing also allows pharmaceutical researchers to customise these microfluidic devices, and create unlimited devices to conduct non-invasive testing, making their imperative work easier and results clearer to help advance medical research and create new solutions that power clinical use. 

Looking ahead: endless potential for medtech

These are just a few examples of 3D printing propelling innovation in the life sciences industry. While it’s clear that miniaturisation is driving immense innovation in medtech and healthcare, high-precision isn’t just a requirement for micro parts. There are many instances where larger parts need the same precision and ultra-high resolution to build a better product. Looking ahead, I expect to see 3D printing’s presence in medtech grow even further, enabling the pioneering of new treatments and modes of care delivery regardless of size.