Science News Archive

Face Transplants a Step Closer To Reality - But Do We Want Them ?

Did you see the film Face Off a few years back where John Travolta and Nicolas Cage swap faces? Well, we might not be far off that procedure being a reality… Surgeons in France and the United States say that they are now ready to graft the face of a dead person onto someone who’s been facially disfigured. But doctors in Britain say they need public support before they will carry out the highly controversial operation and are hoping to spark a public debate following a report due out soon from the Royal College of Surgeons. They acknowledge that while the technological hurdles can now be overcome, transplanting faces raises major moral, ethical and psychological issues.

23rd Nov 2003