Medical Technologies of the Future

It is taken for granted that medical technologies will advance apace in the future, permitting rapid healing and perhaps even shaping of the human body, but it is unclear as to what direction this technology will take for most of us. Indeed, a surprising number of staples of the science-fiction medbay are already in use, from MRI and CT providing real time imaging of the internal functions of the body, to the hypospray providing needleless injections of drugs.

What, then, can we look forwards to doctors of the far future applying?

Forced Regeneration

Using drugs to discourage the formation of scar tissue, and force the multiplication of progenitor cells in the area of an injury, the regeneration of damaged tissue can be forced. There are sharp limits to this technique, however, especially where the brain and heart are involved. Further, if this technique is frequently applied, the recipient runs a high risk of developing cancerous tumors in the healed tissue.

Organ Cloning

Used where forcing regeneration fails, the patient can be kept alive with mechanical assistance until such a time as it is possible to harvest his DNA, and insert it into standardized progenitor cells. The growth of these can then be controlled until an appropriate replacement organ is available for the patient.

Nanomechanical Mimickry

Used where cloned organs are not available, considered untenable, or simply not fast enough, bio-compatible nanomachines may be injected into the target site, and guided to their destination via radio field. There, they latch on, and provide function lost by the damaged cells of the body. This technique is most often used to replace bones and filtration - type cells, such as the kidney, liver, and lung, and does a poor job of replacing muscle or glandular tissue.

Direct Genetic Modification

Primarily for application to genetic diseases, this uses retroviruses to insert a functioning gene into the patient's DNA. This can only add new proteins to expression, replacing non-functional versions. It is highly likely that this will not fully cure the patient, as it cannot reach every cell in the body, however, it will provide relief from the worst of expressed symptoms. Ironically, this technique is often used to fight extremely potent retroviruses, such as HIV and its derivitatives, causing the body to produce its own, mutating, spectrum of antiviral compounds.

Modified cells may be subject to attack from the immune system.

Bacteriophages

Originally developed in the USSR, direct control of the genetic code permits efficient, single-target bacteriophages to be generated from samples of the patients infection. Used where conventional antibiotics fail, these artificially generated viruses hunt and kill bacteria in the human body, with a high level of efficiency.

Mechanical and Biological Replacement

Better. Stronger. Faster. We have the technology.