Accidents, degenerative diseases or tumour treatments can lead to bone defects. If these defects reach a critical size, they do not heal spontaneously during the patient's lifetime and cause substantial individual, societal and economic burden. Current treatment options are hampered by associated complications, poor functional or aesthetic outcomes, a limited availability of tissue for bone grafts, and high financial costs. Worldwide, more than 4 million surgeries per year require bone grafts or substitute materials. Consequently, there is a significant clinical and economic need for novel treatments for critical-size bone defects. For this purpose, the project PRIOBONE has brought forward a new material with a composition that mimics natural bone. It is well tolerated by cells, promotes bone growth, possesses excellent mechanical properties and is 3D-printable. Therefore, the material has the potential to surpass conventional treatments and alternative solutions on the market. In this way, the new material could enable the production of implants that are optimized for patient needs. This includes, for example, the ability to print the material in a foldable form so that it can be inserted minimally invasively into defect sites, where it then unfolds again. Furthermore, the use of established components and our approach, which is based exclusively on non-living materials, are expected to enable a faster track to clinical application and regulatory approval than developments that contain biological components such as cells or previously unknown components.
In the project PRIOBONE, this new material was validated for bone regeneration and commercialization avenues were explored. We expect that PRIOBONE will provide a cost-efficient, individualizable alternative to current treatments with the potential to significantly lower the economic, individual and social burden of critical-size bone defects.
