Human head transplant.

A Chinese surgeon has joined forces with an Italian doctor to prepare for what would be the world's first human head transplant.

A Russian man who suffers from a serious medical condition is set to become the first person to undergo the controversial procedure, devised by Sergio Canavero and Ren Xiaoping. Dr Canavero said that the operation will change the course of history and could lead to cures for previously incurable conditions, such as Valery Spiridonov's muscular atrophy. Human head transplant edges closer to reality: Chinese surgeon teams up with Italian doctor to perform controversial procedure in 2017. Sergio Canavero from Italy will partner with Chinese surgeon Ren Xiaoping. Dr Xiaoping has performed some 1,000 head transplants on mice so far. Duo will plan the head transplant procedure intended for Valery Spiridonov, a 30-year-old computer scientist who has muscular atrophy. Spiridonov has previously told health and nutrition he is ready to put his trust in the experts who claim they can cut off his head and attach it to a healthy body. Controversial specialist Sergio Canavero from Italy will partner with Chinese surgeon Ren Xiaoping to carry out the operation on Valery Spiridonov (pictured), a 30-year-old computer scientist who has muscular atrophy. Dr Canavero announced at a science conference in north-east China that he and his new partner plan to establish a dedicated medical team to give Spiridonov a new body. The operation is set to take place at a hospital affiliated to Harbin Medical University in Heilongjiang, China.

Addressing the 'Frontier Science' conference audience, he said 'Dr Ren is the only person in the world able to lead this project.' 'With its outstanding organisational ability and group operational ability, China might be the best choice to carry out head transplants,' he added, according to the Science and Technology Daily newspaper via The Times
The scientist, who has reportedly received more than $2 million in academic and government funding, according to the paper, said the team won't give up just because their research is controversial. A lifelong sufferer of the rare genetic Werdnig-Hoffman muscle wasting disease, Spiridonov (pictured) said he wants the chance of a new body before he dies. Spiridonov, a 30-year-old computer scientist, has previously told Health nutrition he is ready to put his trust in the experts who claim they can cut off his head and attach it to a healthy body. saying ‘ his decision is final and I do not plan to change my mind.
'A lifelong sufferer of the rare genetic Werdnig-Hoffman muscle wasting disease, he said he wants the chance of a new body before he dies. Dr Canavero said a successful head transplant would ‘change the course of human history by curing incurable medical conditions,’ China.org reported. Dr Canavero said a successful head transplant would ‘change the course of human history by curing incurable medical conditions’ As reported, but experts have branded him 'nuts' and linked him to Dr Frankenstein.'With the human operation, the new body would come from a transplant donor who is brain dead but otherwise healthy. Both donor and patient would have their head severed from their spinal cord at the same time, using an ultra-sharp blade to give a clean cut. The patient's head would then be placed onto the donor's body and attached using what Dr Canavero calls his 'magic ingredient' - a glue-like substance called polyethylene glycol - to fuse the two ends of the spinal cord together. The muscles and blood supply would be stitched up, before the patient is put into a coma for four weeks to stop them from moving while the head and body heal together. When they wake the patient should be able to move, feel their face and even speak with the same voice when head glued back on ?

 It is already 40 years since the first monkey head transplant and since then an operation on a mouse has been carried out in China. But Dr Canavero claims all the necessary techniques already exist to carry out a full human head transplant.
He believes he just needs to put the relevant techniques together to carry out the first successful operation. The new body would come from a normal transplant donor, who is declared brain dead. Both the donor and the patient would have their head severed from their spinal cord at the same time, using an ultra-sharp blade to give a clean cut. The patient's head would then be moved on to the donor's body and attached using a 'glue' called polyethylene glycol to fuse the two ends of the spinal cord together. The muscles and blood supply would be stitched up, before the patient is put into a coma for four weeks to stop them moving while the head and body heal together. During that time the patient would be given small electric shocks to stimulate their spinal cord and strengthen the connections between their head and new body.As the patient is brought out of their medically-induced coma, it is hoped they would be able to move, feel their face, and even speak with the same voice.Powerful immuno suppressant drugs would be prescribed to stop the new body from being rejected. In addition, the patient would require intensive psychological support. Dr Ren, 53, of Harbin Medical University, has since 2013 conducted 1,000 head transplants on mice and plans to perform the operation on primates this year. Testing various methods to stop the mice rejecting their new bodies, or heads, he has managed to reach a survival rate of one day – but there is clearly much work to be done to give a human any chance of survival.