Imagine instant medical transplants or implants with zero risk of rejection and no dangerous anti-rejection medicines. That is the future that bioprinting promises. 

In June 2022, the first human trial of a bioprinted organ was conducted in the US—a bioprinted human ear implant was used to treat a patient with a congenital condition. To reduce the risk of rejection, the implant was printed using patient-specific tissue, with the design based on the patient’s opposite ear. This marked a significant step forward in the regulatory acceptance and commercial viability of bioprinting as a solution to the current shortage of organ donors.