Details of the first Australian cryogenically frozen in the hope of returning to life in the future have been revealed as others sign up for the experimental procedure.
Southern Cryonics, which is the first cryonics facility in the Southern Hemisphere, announced that it has cryogenically frozen its first person, dubbed “Patient One.”
The Sydney man died this month aged 80 and was cryogenically frozen on May 17 at the Southern Cryonics facility in Holbrook, a small New South Wales town located near the Victorian border.
Cryonics is an experimental area of research in which the bodies of clinically dead people are frozen at -196°C so that they can be reanimated if future medical advances allow.
The company explained that it learned of the man’s “deteriorating condition” and “responded quickly” when he died on May 12 at a hospital in Sydney’s inner west.
A Sydney man, who has died aged 80, was the first Australian to be cryogenically frozen in the hope of returning to life in the future.
Cryonics is an experimental area of research in which the bodies of clinically dead people are frozen at -196°C so that they can be resuscitated if future medical advances allow.
Southern Cryonics facility director Philip Rhoades led a team of up to six members, including clinical perfusionists (medical professionals who operate heart-lung machines) and a physician, through the complex 10-hour process of preparing the patient’s body. man in the hope that he will come back to life in the future.
Once the patient died, Mr Rhoades took the train to Sydney and stopped to collect bags of ice before heading to the hospital.
The man’s body was moved to a cool hospital room after his death certificate was submitted and was then packed in ice to reduce his body temperature to six degrees Celsius.
“Patient 1 was transferred from the hospital’s cooling room to the A. O’Hare Funeral Home (Leichhardt), wrapped in ice,” reads a statement from Southern Cryonics.
“Thanks to the quick action of our team, including Phil Rhoades, Australian Blood Management (ABM), and the cooperation of hospital staff, we quickly initiated the suspension process.”
Doctors and perfusionists worked to pump a type of antifreeze fluid through the man’s body that helps reduce body temperature and preserve cells.
The company explained that the man’s body was wrapped. into a special type of sleeping bag and was packed in dry ice before being transported to the Holbrook facility.
“The patient was safely wrapped in a special sleeping bag that remains intact in liquid nitrogen,” Southern Cyronics wrote.
“Patient 1 was then cooled to dry ice temperature and transported to our Holbrook facility.”
The team then reduced the man’s body temperature to -80 degrees Celsius in the facility’s computer-controlled cooling chamber.
The body was then transferred to a Dewar, a specialized type of vacuum flask used to store cryogens, and the entire process was completed on May 17, five days after the man’s death.
The process cost the man a total of $170,000, including additional fees for medical teams who assisted in the preservation process.
The man’s body was taken to the Southern Cryonics facility in Holbrook, a small New South Wales town located near the border with Victoria.
It took a team of up to six people 10 hours to complete the process of preparing the man’s body before transferring it to a Dewar (pictured), a specialized type of vacuum flask used to store cryogens.
Facility director Philip Rhoades (pictured) led the team of up to six people, including clinical perfusionists and a doctor, through the “very stressful” process of preparing the man’s body.
Rhoades explained that the center was open to accepting cadavers this year, but their first patient arrived quite unexpectedly.
“There were a couple of other people who were members who we thought might be likely candidates to be first, but it turned out to be someone who wasn’t a member,” Mr. Rhoades said. ABC News.
“His family called out of the blue and we had about a week to prepare and organize.”
Rhoades said he lost sleep because the complex process of preparing the man’s body was “very stressful.”
“That’s what kept me up for a week because there are a number of different procedures to do on different days, and there were a number of situations that could have gone wrong if we hadn’t prepared properly,” Mr Rhoades said. .
He added that the team had tested all cryonics equipment and was prepared despite having carried out the process only on test dummies.
It comes after more Australians signed up to the controversial practice in the hope of getting a second chance at life.
Allan and Barbara Pease, from Queensland, will be cryogenically frozen together at the Holbrook facility once they die.
The couple, experts in body language, communication and relationships and who have been married for 35 years, said they want their love story to continue even after death.
Queensland couple Allan and Barbara Pease (pictured) are two of 50 Australians who have paid $150,000 to secure a place at Southern Cryonics.
The couple told 60 Minutes Australia that if one of them doesn’t make it, they will “pull the plug on the other.”
‘They have the technology to get us in, but they haven’t figured out how to get us out yet, and there is always a risk. But the alternative is eternal darkness,” Pease said.
‘When we get back, every time they find a way to unfreeze us, if one of us doesn’t do it correctly, they’ll unplug the other. We don’t want to do it alone either, I don’t want to go back without her.’
Mrs Pease added: “I don’t want to go back without him either.” We don’t think about death, we just live in the moment and enjoy every second.’
So far, 50 Australians from all walks of life have paid $150,000 to secure a place at Southern Cryonics.