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Head Transplant

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22 Apr, 2015

Switching heads will take one hour

Interview0 Comments

Canavero confirms that he hopes to operate on his first patient, and said he will carry out the procedure in China if he is banned from doing so in the EU or former Soviet Union.

If Europe and Russia say “no”, the surgery will be done in China. I’m ready for that. I’ve been studying Chinese for a few years. You should understand that it’s not simply a medical procedure. This surgery has a political meaning. The Soviet Union was the first one to send Yuri Gagarin to space, America was the first on the Moon. The country that hosts head transplant surgery for the first time will become a leader like this.

On the procedure:

I chose Valery for two reasons. First, he’s brave enough and ready to go till the end.Second, his bravery is based on knowledge, he studied everything the scientists have discovered in the area. This way, I decided, he will be the first one to make history

Valery’s head will be cooled to 10-15 degrees Celsius. That is done in cases of surgery on deep areas of the brain. We will have an hour to ‘switch’ the head to a different body. You need a few minutes to join blood vessels. Valery’s head will be detached from his body and transferred to another one in a matter of seconds, and the brain’s blood flow will start in about 15 minutes. The surgery will take a lot of time, the joining process may take up to 18-24 hours. Doctors will be taking turns not to get tired.

On the costs:

Do you love football? I hate it. Nonetheless, you have slackers who meaninglessly stroll around the pitch and are paid $20-30 million a year. I need $15 million. It’s the price for happiness and health for a lot of people. But sponsors prefer spending money on healthy boneheads who can’t kick a ball.