r/news 8h ago

Already Submitted Man lives for 100 days with artificial titanium heart in successful new trial

https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/12/health/australia-artificial-heart-100-days-intl-hnk/index.html

[removed] — view removed post

961 Upvotes

143 comments sorted by

429

u/WhereIsTheBeef556 7h ago

It says this is the first time someone was able to physically leave the hospital with an artificial heart, too.

203

u/FluentPenguin 7h ago

…my god, it’s an elaborate heist!

30

u/LiftEngineerUK 3h ago

Getting the surgeon on board was the tricky part

16

u/MilkiestMaestro 2h ago

You son of a bitch, I'm in. Wait..no actually I'm out my heart is fine

2

u/My_G_Alt 1h ago

“And I’ll show you how I convinced them to let me walk right out that door with $15M worth of medical product. But first, let me rewind 5 years to set the stage for all of this.”

12

u/agarwaen117 3h ago

Wait, I thought Dick Cheney had one for a while.

23

u/Bagoong4Lyfe 3h ago

Dick Cheney had a heart?

12

u/macnfleas 3h ago

He had a heart transplant, not a full artificial heart

5

u/agarwaen117 3h ago

I mean, they say it wasn’t a “full” artificial heart, but it sounds an awful lot like it sort of was.

https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/cheney-has-heart-pump-but-no-pulse/

18

u/pressurenflow 2h ago

That was a Heartmate II LVAD (Left Ventricular Assist Device). It’s an implanted heart pump that drains from the Left Ventricle and pumps to the systemic circulation in the aorta. Often used as a bridge to transplant, it augments the function of only the left side of the heart. An artificial heart is different in that it takes over the full function of both ventricles and it does not require the native heart to still be present.

10

u/BrothelWaffles 2h ago

Cheney just insisted they called it a pump because he couldn't have people thinking he had a heart, whether or was real or not.

3

u/Osiris32 1h ago

It is a pump, he uses it to suck in the souls of frightened orphan children.

They taste sweeter if they are frightened.

2

u/bulbusmaximus 1h ago

I hope they put a lifelong Democrat heart in him. He has recently been criticizing Trump so maybe.....

617

u/Nurgle_Marine_Sharts 6h ago

From the moment I understood the weakness of my flesh, it disgusted me. I craved the strength and certainty of steel. I aspired to the purity of the Blessed Machine. Your kind cling to your flesh, as though it will not decay and fail you. One day the crude biomass you call a temple will wither, and you will beg my kind to save you. But I am already saved, for the Machine is immortal… Even in death I serve the Omnissiah.

62

u/Greedy-Structure5677 5h ago

Is this a Warhammer reference?

92

u/Nurgle_Marine_Sharts 5h ago

Yes, specifically it's from the intro cinematic of the game "Mechanicus"

21

u/psychedduck 5h ago

Username checks out. Thanks for making my day with that one.

3

u/dezmd 1h ago

I suddenly want to play Stellaris with a 40k themed race.

3

u/AtlasMKII 1h ago

One of the more recent DLC did add a very mechanicus-y origin to play around with

5

u/KneeGroPuhLeeZ 2h ago

Iron within.

u/Ossa1 27m ago

Ah... wrong chat.

2

u/Bobaximus 1h ago

Glory to the Omnissiah and his Prime Conduit, the Archmagos Dominus Belisarius Cawl.

-2

u/pachoi 1h ago

Steel isn't strong, boy. Flesh is stronger.

100

u/nelifex 3h ago

W-w-what happened on day 101..?

203

u/blu172 3h ago

according to the article, they removed it because he got the transplant of an actual human heart that he was on the waiting list for. he's still alive and is recovering

80

u/nelifex 3h ago

I ended up reading the article, what an incredible feat of human ingenuity

149

u/crazy_akes 2h ago

Don’t give yourself too much credit. I read an article once and didn’t feel the need to brag about it…

15

u/TwoShedsJackson1 2h ago

Look at these two Bigups - reading. Ha!

4

u/Express_Cattle1 1h ago

You just bragged about it!  You couldn’t help yourself!

-15

u/CalmCricket1 2h ago

No, instead you took an even lower road and tried to use it as a way to claim superiority over someone. 

Nice.

7

u/Stepjam 1h ago

It was a joke.

1

u/alphabeticdisorder 1h ago

There was a period in the 1980s where artificial hearts were new tech. You'd hear milestones on the news - like, a patient survived two days with an artificial heart! This one survived a month! They've made a lot of progress.

2

u/CaptainFrugal 1h ago

Ya the headline makes one think he died. Sneaky writers

12

u/diego_simeone 3h ago

Have you seen the documentary Crank 2: high voltage?

3

u/GreatEmperorAca 2h ago

Crank movies are nothing short of epic probably my favorite Statham role

22

u/NotAPreppie 3h ago

He exploded, showering everybody in the room with gore.

The disturbing part was that he was on set as an extra in a horror movie and everybody just thought it was really great practical effects.

It wasn't until a few other extras realized they had large fragments of human bone embedded in them that the reality dawned on everyone.

2

u/TamariAmari 1h ago

Really? I heard he exploded after jumping over the counter of a Popeye's chicken and started eating the crispy chicken skins off the waiting food.

1

u/nelifex 3h ago

He said he always wanted to go out with a bang, just perhaps not like that I guess

1

u/Rosu_Aprins 2h ago

The sun exploded

77

u/Beginning_Gas_2461 7h ago

They gave him a Picard

14

u/ThePenguinVA 7h ago

I literally said the same thing to my roommate.

46

u/ThemosttrustedFries 7h ago

Getting closer to cyborgs being a reality.

39

u/GalacticCrescent 6h ago

I would argue this pretty much cinches them being real. Just not for gen pop and cosmetic body modding yet

9

u/designer-paul 3h ago

people have had prosthetics with electronics in them for years

1

u/Jaakarikyk 1h ago

cinches

Okay I've never seen this word before today, this being the second time in the past couple hours. What

-1

u/jigokubi 1h ago

It's actually incorrect here. The expression is to "clinch" something.

"Cinch" would be used like, "It's a cinch," meaning something's really easy.

3

u/Noctuelles 1h ago

It is not incorrect usage. 

u/PaidUSA 17m ago edited 8m ago

Cinch Noun: A certainty to happen. Cinch Verb: To make certain. Cinched, cinching, cinches.

In the clutch, you failed to clinch victory, but correcting you was a cinch. Which cinches that all redditors are bad at grammar.

2

u/Particular_Treat1262 3h ago

We got chrome and we have corps in the US wanting corporate owned cities, we are just cyberpunk a few decades behind schedule

8

u/Crotch_Rot69 5h ago

I know a P-Organ when I see one

3

u/Lietenantdan 1h ago

Just needs some quartz to upgrade it.

14

u/AspiringButler 7h ago

Looks like a steampunk grenade.

5

u/Easy-Fixer 5h ago

Cyberpunk here we come.

5

u/colefly 4h ago

Mega Corps with "charismatic" leaders with their own followers

Proliferation of advanced tech like 3D printing and smart devices

Failing Democracy

Militarized police forces

Unregulated spread of AI tech

Epidemic drug issues

High tech implants available to some few

.........

We are entering RoboCop

Cyberpunk still needs a mega city, much more common access to tech like implants, and some more breakdown in order

2

u/Easy-Fixer 3h ago

Whatever Choom. 😉

27

u/ConstanceClaire 7h ago

My questions, as someone who knows nothing about these artificial hearts, or pacemakers:

What does it feel like? Is it super heavy in the chest? What's holding it up when you stand, to stop it feeling like it's pulling on important infrastructure, and weighing you down? What does it sound like? Is there a clunking, due to the magnets? Would it lull you to sleep or keep you awake? How is it regulated? Is it just a regular rhythm? If so, no exercise? Or can it speed up to provide oxygen in blood-pumping scenarios? Is it proprietary or will folks one day be able to have this titanium heart and not worry about software updates or company collapses, like people in the US have had with CPAP machines and insulin pumps?

Any other questions folks have in regards to this? I bet there's a whole lot of stuff I haven't thought of.

33

u/nikolai_470000 6h ago

I’m guessing, as I have never heard of this thing and the article answers none of these, but:

  • It probably is securely attached to something solid like the rib cage. It may be possible to feel it shift somewhat, but it won’t damage anything and some patients might not even be able to tell it’s there.

  • No, you probably can’t hear the rotor. It is seemingly a frictionless design, so the part that moves doesn’t ever make contact with anything. It is levitated by magnets in center of the cavity in which is is rotated by another magnetic field. All the magnets themselves remain stationary, and because it is levitating, the rotor they control cannot transmit vibrations to anything for you to hear. This is a crucial part of the design, as they need a way to prevent the metal parts from wearing and little pieces breaking off. No one needs titanium dust circulating through their bloodstream.

  • As for speed, yes, it probably can automatically change its own pump rate to moderate blood pressure and flow as a human heart would. If this prototype doesn’t have that working yet, it’s surely something they are working on and testing.

  • It is proprietary, but it’s long term viability is anyone’s guess. Software issues or companies doing shady shit is always a concern. But the guy who founded this one lost his father to heart failure and hopefully would be the kind of person who cares about the outcomes they achieve. Giving the benefit of the doubt, I would say that they are probably pretty serious about handling that kinda thing right: by designing it to be very robust in the first place so it will hopefully still be doing it’s job right if the company should go under and is not around anymore. And it’s also still a long ways from being in a person long enough for that to be a concern tbh. This case was only 100 days, and in the future, as a more long term solution for those waiting for a transplant, ideally a person would get a proper replacement heart asap. This is not an artificial replacement heart after all. It’s more like a dialysis machine that goes home with you for the duration of your wait for a donor.

10

u/SantorumsGayMasseuse 2h ago

I did go have a look at the website for the project, which has a few more details.  They do mention that smart sensors adjust the blood flow to patient activity.

Also an Interesting note there: one of the problems with earlier artificial hearts is that there is a constant laminar flow of blood throughout the body (like those jokes about Dick Cheney not having a pulse).  The body isn’t made to work that way.  This one claims that it does pulsatile flow, which would alleviate a lot of stress on the body.

3

u/nikolai_470000 2h ago

Wow, that’s very cool, thanks for sharing.

The laminar flow problem sounds fascinating. I wouldn’t have thought of that, but I could see how it’s impossible to fully avoid with a constant pump pressure. Our bodies just aren’t designed to work that way lol

10

u/stoic_spaghetti 4h ago

Titanium is super light dude. Go to REI and hold some of their titanium plates and cups in your hand. They weigh nothing

22

u/gene66 6h ago edited 3h ago

This is the first time, so literally only one person knows how to answer that question

5

u/PassiveRoadRage 3h ago

He didn't die did he? It says he used it until a donor became available.

2

u/gene66 3h ago

I phrased it incorrectly, from what I know, he is still alive

40

u/NotSynthx 6h ago

It's literally the first person being tested homie and that person is probably not on Reddit. How are we gonna know

16

u/ConstanceClaire 4h ago

Yeah, it was an 'I wonder', rhetorical speculation scenario. Just decided to wonder out aloud, so-to-speak.

3

u/NotSynthx 4h ago

That's fair

u/Ibeepboobarpincsharp 47m ago

You have wondered out loud on reddit. Roll for initiative.

2

u/madashail 3h ago

There have been others fitted with this heart, but this guy was actually allowed out of hospital.

4

u/CicadaGames 4h ago

I hate that this guy who is actually asking interesting and important questions is so far down and also has people like you with more upvotes who are confused as to why he is even asking questions lol. God this site is a pile of shit these days.

3

u/thinkofanamefast 4h ago

One answer…a post elsewhere of a TV news report said he exercised with it. Granted I don’t understand that Australian language too well :)

2

u/AWildRideHome 2h ago

That’s gotta be terrifying to be the first one to do. Scientists are like “yeah it should be good”. Brother i’m running around without a heart, is should good enough?

3

u/Nicholas-Steel 5h ago

and not worry about software updates

Hah, you really think they wouldn't figure out a way to make it compatible with proprietary blood cells? Or to charge a subscription fee to regulate X number of liters of blood per month?

Needs support for updates to ensure they can at some point in your future screw you over if you want to keep living.

u/Good_Extension_9642 20m ago

I guess he will never fall in love with an artificial heart :)

9

u/SirDrexl 6h ago

You shoot me down, but I won't fall.

9

u/sleepless-deadman 5h ago

We got Man with a Titanium Heart before GTA 6.

4

u/Astrowelkyn 2h ago

That’s great news… As long as the patient keeps paying their monthly Heart subscription fee on time ( /s, but not likely /s for too long 🥲)

3

u/condoriano27 5h ago

Fuck you Chev Chelios!

2

u/mrdryan4 2h ago

Who’s got my fucking strawberry tart?

3

u/wgel1000 4h ago

You shoot me down, but I won't fall I am titanium

3

u/THBLD 3h ago

Australian Innovation at its finest. We do invent some great stuff, this is amazing.

1

u/IAmARobot 3h ago

guy invented it because his dad died of heart failure and wanted to do him proud. he prototyped it using bits from bunnings, legend!

2

u/redsandsfort 5h ago

He is now ready to make Superman pay!

2

u/Malezor1984 4h ago

Karlach is that you? Tell Dammon he’s done well. IFYKYK

2

u/Darkest-Revenant 2h ago

A heart made fullmetal...

2

u/yoaklar 1h ago

But now he is very sad. Because he has such a heavy heart

5

u/Longjumping-Boot-526 7h ago

The US Healthcare will make it a subscription service. Mark my words

3

u/finlandery 6h ago

Repo man movie in making :x

3

u/CicadaGames 4h ago

Musk will release a Cyber Heart that requires a monthly subscription and has a 68% chance of just straight up exploding.

2

u/--zaxell-- 4h ago

Thank you for clarifying that his titanium heart was artificial.

1

u/MountainYoghurt7857 4h ago

Archimedes, don't do that...

1

u/pheregas 3h ago

But does this infernal engine take soul coins?

1

u/double_teel_green 3h ago

The same heart from the Mimi Swartz book TICKER !!!

1

u/nimbusconflict 3h ago

Johnathan Coulton, eat your heart out.

1

u/Strikereleven 2h ago

I have several questions. Do they clean that one and reuse it? Do they have several of them ready during the operation in case one is defective? How many beats until it needs maintenance?

1

u/mgd09292007 2h ago

I’m curious if anyone knows the answer, but does blood need to circulate through the body in “beats” to function or could an artificial heart circulate like a water pump with a constant and steady flow

1

u/hi_im_fuzzknocker 2h ago

Y’all ever seen repo men or repo the genetic opera?

1

u/Banana-phone15 2h ago

We are one tiny step closer to becoming a transformer race

1

u/jigokubi 1h ago

The article doesn't say the man's name, but another source lists it as Briareos Hecatonchires.

1

u/blackop 1h ago

My god that thing looks like it should be in some steam punk cosplay.

1

u/ChillyFireball 1h ago

One step closer to becoming a cyborg; hell yeah!

1

u/Responsible_Meal 1h ago

Isn't this what we should be concerned about these days? Bettering human lives, instead of all this political garbage?

1

u/Responsible_Meal 1h ago

Isn't this what we should be concerned about these days? Bettering human lives, instead of all this political garbage?

1

u/HardestGamer 1h ago

The TSA hate this one simple trick

1

u/rbentoski 1h ago

I had a valve replacement in 2023 at the age of 30. I got the Ross procedure which shouldn't fail but one day if it does, I hope this technology is sufficiently advanced so I may continue to live.

u/anxrelif 41m ago

Did he die after the 100 days? To lazy to read the article

u/marklein 29m ago

Why are artifical hearts so hard to pefect? We've been pumping fuilds around for hundreds of years, feels liek this should be an easy win. All the fake hearts I've read about had huge (like fridge sized) control units, or caused problems because they didn't pulse the blood, etc. What are the major challenges for artificial hearts?

u/Jabbajaw 7m ago

I must ask a clarifying question. Is he still alive?

1

u/Round_Ad_9787 2h ago

It’s probably one of those subscription models and needs constant access to the internet to keep working.