Open Access

HOW I DO IT

How I Do It: Cost-effective 3D printed models for renal masses

E. Reilly Scott¹, Abhay Singh², Andrea Quinn¹, Kaitlyn Boyd³, Costas D. Lallas²

1 Sidney Kimmel Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
2 Department of Urology, Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
3 Health Design Lab of Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Address correspondence to Dr. Costas D. Lallas, Department of Urology, Thomas Jefferson University, 1025 Walnut Street, Suite 1100, Philadelphia PA 19107 USA

Canadian Journal of Urology 2021, 28(5), 10874-10877.

Abstract

3D printing has been growing in many surgical fields including Urology. The primary use has been to print kidneys with tumors to better understand anatomy and to assist with surgical planning and education. Previous studies that utilized 3D printing of kidneys for partial nephrectomies have been limited by the cost and complexity of model creation, rendering them highly impractical to be used on a routine basis. Using a simpler and more cost-effective design and materials allow the 3D kidney models to be used in a wider range and number of patients. We describe our streamlined process to create 3D kidney models costing $30 on average and we believe this process can be repeated by others.

---

Keywords

---