Could titanium hearts be a solution to a global heart donor shortage?
The breakthrough raises hopes that fully mechanical hearts could one day replace the need for donor transplants.
Diseases of the heart and surrounding blood vessels are the leading cause of death globally, killing about 17.9 million people each year, according to the World Health Organization.
Here's what to know about how the titanium heart works, and can it solve the global donor shortage?
What happened with the man with an artificial heart?
The man in his forties, who declined to be identified, became the first person to be discharged from hospital with a fully artificial heart implant.
During a six-hour surgery in November 2024 at St Vincent's Hospital in Sydney, the BiVACOR Total Artificial Heart (TAH) made of titanium was implanted into the patient, who was experiencing severe heart failure.
After spending a few weeks in intensive care, followed by observation in the hospital, the patient was discharged in early February.
He lived with the artificial heart for 105 days before receiving a donor heart transplant on March 6, and is currently recovering well, according to his doctors.
Has anyone else had a titanium heart transplant?
In July 2024, a 57-year-old man with end-stage heart failure received the BiVACOR TAH at Baylor St Luke's Medical Center in Houston, Texas.
This was the first human implantation of the titanium heart, serving as a bridge to a real heart transplant. The device supported the patient for eight days in the hospital until a donor heart became available.
Between July and November 2024, four other men in their mid-forties to mid-sixties in the US also received the BiVACOR TAH. Each patient successfully transitioned to a donor heart transplant and was discharged from the hospital within a month. None of the US patients left the hospital with the device.
Could it solve a heart donor shortage?
The titanium heart could possibly help address the donor shortage by keeping patients alive while they wait for a real heart transplant. However, it is still uncertain whether it could ever serve as a permanent replacement for a human heart.
The procedures in the US, for example, were part of a five-person early feasibility study approved by the country's Food and Drug Administration (FDA), with plans to expand the trial to 15 more patients in the coming months. The goal of such trials is to determine whether the titanium heart can safely keep patients alive while they wait for a transplant.
Finding a donor heart isn't easy because there aren't enough available, and matching a heart to a patient can take time. In the United Kingdom, for example, patients on the regular waiting list for a donor heart usually wait 18 to 24 months. Those in urgent or emergency cases get priority and may receive a heart sooner because their condition is more critical.
Heart failure affects at least 26 million people worldwide, including 6.2 million adults in the US. However, heart transplants remain rare, with fewer than 6,000 performed globally each year, reserved only for the most severe cases.
How does a titanium heart work?
The titanium artificial heart works very differently from a real heart. A natural heart beats by squeezing and relaxing to pump blood, but this artificial heart does not beat at all.
Instead, it has a spinning disc inside that moves the blood around the body. This disc floats in place using magnets, so it never touches anything, meaning there's no friction and less chance of it wearing out over time.
To keep running, the artificial heart needs a small external controller, which is powered by batteries during the day and plugged into a power source at night. A thin cable runs under the skin to connect the heart to this controller.
Most artificial heart devices only replace one side of the heart, usually the left side. But the BiVACOR heart completely replaces the entire organ, making it an option for people whose whole heart is failing and who might not survive while waiting for a donor heart.
Why was titanium chosen for an artificial heart?
Titanium was chosen because it is strong, lightweight, and resistant to corrosion, making it ideal for long-term use in the body. Unlike other artificial hearts, which have multiple moving parts that can wear out, this one has only one spinning disc, reducing the risk of failure.
Before the development of the BiVACOR artificial heart, the SynCardia Total Artificial Heart was the most commonly used device for patients with severe heart failure.
Approved by the FDA in the early 2000s, the SynCardia heart is constructed primarily from polyurethane, a type of durable plastic. Over the past two decades, it has been temporarily implanted in more than 2,000 patients across 20 countries while they awaited donor heart transplants. However, the SynCardia device is relatively large and complex, with multiple moving parts that can wear out over time.
Scientists have also explored using animal organs to treat heart failure. In January 2022, surgeons at the University of Maryland Medical Center in the US performed the first transplant of a genetically modified pig heart into a human patient with severe heart disease.
Despite initial success, the patient developed complications and passed away approximately two months later.
How long could a titanium heart last?
Currently, no one knows the exact lifespan of the titanium heart in humans. In lab tests, the device has operated continuously for more than four years without signs of failure.
While the Australian man's 100-day trial was the longest recorded use of the titanium heart in a human, the BiVACOR team has said further trials are needed to determine whether it could become a long-term replacement rather than just a temporary bridge to a transplant.
The development of the device began in 2001 when Daniel Timms, inspired by his father's heart condition, started working on the concept during his PhD at Queensland University of Technology in Australia. Since then, it has undergone years of research, redesign, and testing in animals like calves and pigs.
What challenges come with an artificial heart?
One of the biggest challenges with organ transplants is immune rejection, where the body attacks the new organ as a foreign object.
Since the BiVACOR titanium heart does not contain any biological tissue, the risk of rejection is lower compared with donor hearts or pig heart transplants. However, trial protocols indicate patients still take blood-thinning medication to prevent clotting around the device.
Additionally, patients with the BiVACOR heart must stay connected to an external power source at all times.
While portable battery packs allow for some mobility, the process still requires lifestyle adjustments such as battery recharging, avoiding activities that could damage the external parts, and planning travel carefully to ensure access to power.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Qatar Tribune
11-08-2025
- Qatar Tribune
Delhi given 8 weeks to round up thousands of stray dogs
agencies new delhi India's top court has ordered authorities in Delhi and its suburbs to move all stray dogs from streets to animal shelters. The court expressed concerns over rising 'menace of dog bites leading to rabies' and gave an eight-week deadline to officials to finish the task. Delhi's stray dog population is estimated at one million, with suburban Noida, Ghaziabad, and Gurugram also seeing a rise, municipal sources say. India has millions of stray dogs and the country accounts for 36% of the total rabies-related deaths in the world, according to the World Health Organization. 'Infants and young children, not at any cost, should fall prey to rabies. The action should inspire confidence that they can move freely without fear of being bitten by stray dogs,' legal news website Live Law quoted the court as saying. The court directed that multiple shelters be established across Delhi and its suburbs, each capable of housing at least 5,000 dogs. These shelters should be equipped with sterilisation and vaccination facilities, as well as CCTV cameras. The court ruled sterilised dogs must not be released in public areas, despite current rules requiring their return to the capture site. It also ordered that a helpline should be set up within a week to report dog bites and rabies cases. Animal welfare groups, however, have voiced strong concerns over the court's directive. They said that the timeline set up by the court was unrealistic. 'Most Indian cities currently do not have even 1% of the capacity [needed] to rehabilitate stray dogs in shelters,' said Nilesh Bhanage, founder of PAWS, a prominent animal rights group. 'If the court and the authorities actually want to end the menace, they should focus on strengthening the implementation of the existing regulations to control dog population and rabies - they include vaccination, sterilisation and efficient garbage management.' Government data shows that there were 3.7 million reported cases of dog bites across the country in 2024.
ILoveQatar.net
10-08-2025
- ILoveQatar.net
Qatar Red Crescent launches cancer treatment initiative in Syria
As part of its humanitarian efforts to alleviate the suffering of patients with cancer in Syria, Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) has launched a new project to provide costly chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and hormonal drugs for patients with cancer at oncology centers in northern Syria. The five-month project responds to the significant gap in specialized health care services in northern Syria, exacerbated by the prolonged conflict and unaffordable prices of cancer drugs. Hopefully, it will help reduce mortality rates and health complications among patients with cancer and ease the burden on local health care facilities by reducing the need to refer patients for treatment abroad. Under the project, essential cancer drugs such as chemotherapy and immunotherapy will be supplied, distributed, and examined for quality in coordination with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the health directorates in Idlib and Aleppo. These supplies are expected to directly benefit 112 patients with cancer over the five-month period, in addition to 560 indirect beneficiaries from the families of patients and the local community. In a statement, Mohamed Bader Al-Sada, Assistant Secretary-General for Relief and International Development at QRCS, said, 'Given the high mortality rates and limited resources, there remains a need for more support to address the gap and provide early detection and treatment services for various types of cancer". Mr. Al-Sada revealed preparations for a new project to provide chemotherapy and immunotherapy drugs for 400 displaced and poor patients with cancer at oncology centers in Syria. He called on the benevolent donors to lend a hand in creating a new hope for patients with cancer, by donating via the project's webpage or calling the home donation collection number (+974 3399 8898). 'A donation of just QR 10,000 can save the life of a patient, after years of suffering and pain from cancer," he emphasized. This intervention builds on a previous project, implemented by QRCS in 2024, to provide drugs and medical supplies for more than 900 patients with cancer. It also involved supporting cancer treatment centers with medical equipment and training for health care personnel. Cancer in Syria continues to be a significant public health concern, exacerbated by years of conflict and its impact on health care infrastructure and access to treatment. Despite efforts to rebuild and strengthen cancer care services, shortages of essential medications, limited access to specialized treatment facilities, and lack of comprehensive cancer screening programs remain major challenges.
Qatar Tribune
26-07-2025
- Qatar Tribune
WHO renews HMC's Tobacco Control Center as collaborating facility until 2029
The World Health Organization (WHO) has renewed the designation of the Tobacco Control Center as a collaborating center for treating tobacco dependence for the second consecutive time for a new four year-round ending in 2029. This step reflects the leading position for Qatar in its efforts in tobacco control across the region. This international recognition, which is one of its kind in the Eastern Mediterranean region, is a confirmation of the leading position of the center across the region, which was initially designated as a collaborating center by the WHO in 2017. (QNA) page 2
