What you need to know about the new implants to patch up failing hearts – is it really a ‘breakthrough’?

By John Martin, Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine, UCL

There are many difficulties in converting any biological research into a medicine that will treat patients. Because of the complexity involved, these difficulties apply especially to translating cell research in the laboratory to a successful treatment for heart failure, where the heart is unable to pump blood around the body properly.

The definitive treatment for heart failure is a heart transplant – a difficult and costly procedure. Pills are prescribed for the condition, but they only delay death and are not effective in changing the cause of the disease.

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