3D printed soft surgical planning prototype for a biliary tract rhabdomyosarcoma

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Surgical Planning
• Materials Science

Background:

• Biliary tract rhabdomyosarcoma is a rare pediatric cancer posing significant surgical challenges.
• Complete tumor resection is often difficult, leading to potential complications and long-term sequelae.
• 3D surgical planning prototypes offer a valuable tool for pre-operative preparation and practice.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate multi-material 3D surgical planning prototypes for biliary tract rhabdomyosarcoma.
• To identify materials that accurately mimic the mechanical properties of liver tissue.
• To assess the dimensional accuracy and cost-effectiveness of the 3D prototypes.

Main Methods:

• Characterization of various material compositions using Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA) and Shore hardness tests.
• Selection of materials (6%wt PVA/1%wt PHY-1FT and 1%wt agarose) for their viscoelastic and hardness properties.
• Manufacturing and validation of a 3D prototype using 1%wt agarose, with dimensional accuracy assessed via CT scan.

Main Results:

• 1%wt agarose demonstrated optimal Shore hardness for mimicking liver tissue.
• 6%wt PVA/1%wt PHY-1FT and 1%wt agarose showed promising viscoelastic properties.
• The 3D prototype exhibited a low dimensional error (approx. 1%, <3.35 mm) compared to the CT model.
• The total manufacturing cost was relatively low at €513.

Conclusions:

• Multi-material 3D prototypes using selected materials can effectively replicate liver tissue properties for surgical planning.
• These cost-effective prototypes enhance surgical preparation, potentially improving outcomes for challenging biliary tract rhabdomyosarcoma resections.
• The validated 3D model demonstrates high dimensional accuracy, making it a reliable tool for pre-operative simulation.