The New Frontier of Face Transplants

Posted Thursday, December 31, 2009

Twenty-first century advances have left many exploring the moral, cultural, and emotional boundaries of the medical field. Dr. Maria Siemionow, director of plastic surgery research at the Cleveland Clinic, is on the cusp that with her team's groundbreaking work in facial transplants. In her book, Face to Face: My Quest to Perform the First Full Face Transplant, Dr. Siemionow discusses how the surgery was accomplished and the many challenges of this radical procedure. We'll talk with Dr. Siemionow about that as well as the psychological and social affects of severe disfigurement. Join us Thursday for SOI at 9:00 on 90.3.

Guests

Dr. Maria Siemionow, Director of Plastic Surgery Research, The Cleveland Clinic Foundation

Additional Information

A New Face: A Bold Surgeon, an Untried Surgery, The New York Times
First U.S. Face Transplant Described, The New York Times
Cleveland Clinic face transplant patient Connie Culp hopes her story teaches people not to judge, The Plain Dealer
Cleveland Clinic's Face Transplant Facts

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shellie sedlak 10:32 AM 12/31/09

I never can understand the balking about cosmetic improvement..Even if the need for this surgery was slightly less horific and a bit more a nod to facial harmony...isn’t the quality of life on par with life, itself?