Meet Kai Cheng
You don’t need a coffee when you meet Kai Cheng, his enthusiastic and energetic personality is so infectious it makes you feel as though you’ve had 10!
Kai understands that no one chooses to be diagnosed with cancer. He is constantly looking to innovate, developing more efficient and cost-effective practices with new materials, techniques and technology to help improve patient experience and outcomes. When he is inspired, there is no stopping him.
For most patients, surgery plays a vital role in their treatment plans. To effectively treat head and neck cancers, surgeons often need to remove a part of a patient's jawbone, gums, or teeth, and in some instances, all three need to be removed. This surgery can alter the shape of their face, which, as I’m sure you can imagine, can leave some patients feeling self-conscious about their appearance.
Kai works behind the scenes as the Surgical Innovation Research Manager and Additive Manufacturing Specialist. But we like to call him ‘the magician’ because he is constantly innovating and producing new tools to assist surgeons and enhance patient experience.
Our brand-new Integrated Prosthetics and Reconstruction (IPR) Laboratory is where Kai’s imagination comes to life. His innovative workspace wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for a generous donation from the Lang Walker Family Foundation. This family has been supporting Chris O’Brien Lifehouse from the very beginning, and even supported the construction of Chris O’Brien Lifehouse ten years ago!
You may be wondering what the IPR lab is...
It’s a cutting-edge facility where magicians like Kai can produce custom 3-D printing to create pieces that will help improve surgeon efficiency for intricate head and neck procedures like bone graft jaw reconstructions; as well as making personalised prosthetics for patients.
Kai helps design and create these prosthetic bone replacements for our head and neck patients who have had bone removed. These replacements can be done in the exact image of the person they were taken out of with the aim of minimizing the visual changes post-surgery – this may seem insignificant to some.
Still... It is important for patients to feel a sense of self and normalcy when they are going through numerous treatments in the hope of removing their cancer.
Every design is personalised for each patient, embodying the same bone structure, with the aim of enhancing their mental wellbeing and overall quality of life.
“Witnessing firsthand the positive impact of my work on patient care and surgical outcomes is a powerful motivator.” - Kai Cheng
Kai’s expertise extends beyond prosthetics; he is always trying to find new ways to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of each surgery, treatment, and patient recovery through his 3D-printed surgical ‘tools.’
The collaborative and innovative environment fostered between Kai, the head and neck team, and Speech Pathologist enabled the creation of the Restorabite. A 3D-printed in-house device made especially for patients who have undergone surgery that has left them unable to use the full movement of their jaw, making it hard to eat and talk.
With the support of Restorabite, patients can strengthen their jaw using the different levels of resistance to help them regenerate their strength... like physiotherapy for the mouth. Printing these devices in-house helps to significantly reduce costs, making them more accessible for patients.
“Creating innovative surgical procedures and devices that drastically improve patients' quality of life is truly fulfilling.” - Kai Cheng
Thanks to generous community initiatives like SurFebruary, Kai received funding to conduct a recent study showing how virtual reality can enhance surgical planning for our surgeons.
Surgeries can be complicated; cancer can weave its way into the body, around bones and arteries. Giving surgeons the ability to prepare and perform the surgery using this 3D virtual reality platform beforehand allows them to try different approaches to ensure they can remove as much cancer as possible, giving our patients the best possible outcome.
“Our goal from this study will hopefully lead to implementing our project into Chris O’Brien Lifehouse as the natural way of surgical planning.
I want to express my deepest gratitude for your continuous support. Your contributions go beyond resources; they symbolize hope, healing, and the discovery of new treatments and procedures.
You are an integral part of our community, and we truly appreciate your unwavering commitment to our cause. Thank you.”
- Kai Cheng, Surgical Innovation Research Manager and Additive Manufacturing Specialist.
*Kai doesn’t let materials go to waste. During the printing process, waste products like Nylon powder come off each piece. It can’t be used in other medical devices, so Kai utilises his skills and will be using this material for something special...coming soon.
