News
Man Preparing To Get His Head Transplanted: Could Experience Fate “Worse Than Death”
Right away, let me be clear that this post is not a joke. Science has advanced far enough that I can write this and it’s not a parody nor is it a treatment for a sci-fi body horror film.
Allow me to introduce you to 30-year old Russian man Valery Spiridonov, who you can see at the bottom of this post. Spiridonov suffers from a horrible illness by the name of Werdnig-Hoffmann, which is the most severe case of spinal muscular atrophy. He suffers from rapidly declining health and his disease has no cure or treatment. This is why he has volunteered for one of the most insane operations I’ve ever heard of. Doctors are planning a 36-hour operation, which will require the assistance of potentially up to 150 doctors and nurses, that will remove his head and install it onto another person’s body.
The operation was first, “…proposed two years ago by neuroscientist Sergio Canavero from the Turin Advanced Neuromodulation Group in Italy” (source). It was estimated to be a procedure that would first be attempted in 2017. However, Spiridonov volunteered, thus moving up the timetable.
Dr. Hunt Batjer, president elect of the American Association for Neurological Surgeons, is very worried about the operation, stating:
I would not wish this on anyone. I would not allow anyone to do it to me as there are a lot of things worse than death.
The fear is that once all of the difficult pathways are connected, such as the spinal cord and jugular vein, that the head will experience different chemistry than the body, which will descend the mind into insanity. Since this procedure has never before been done on a person, the type of insanity that might occur will be something unique and impossible to prepare for.
Director of medical ethics at New York University’s Langone Medical Centre Arthur Caplan added:
…[patients] would end up being overwhelmed with different pathways and chemistry than they are used to and they’d go crazy.
No matter what happens, it’s both incredible that science has come this far and terrifying to imagine what will actually happen.
We have learned the sad news this week that prolific horror author Ray Garton, who wrote nearly 70 books over the course of his career, has passed away after a battle with lung cancer.
Ray Garton was 61 years old.
Stephen King tweets, “I’m hearing that Ray Garton, horror novelist and friend, died yesterday. This is sad news, and a loss to those who enjoyed his amusing, often surreal, posts on Twitter.”
Ray Garton’s novels include Seductions, Darklings, Live Girls, Night Life, and Crucifax in the 1980s, followed in later decades by output including A Dark Place: The Story of a True Haunting, Trade Secrets, The New Neighbor, Lot Lizards, Dark Channel, Shackled, The Girl in the Basement, The Loveliest Dead, Ravenous, Bestial, and most recently, Trailer Park Noir.
Garton also wrote young adult novels under the name Joseph Locke, including the novelizations for A Nightmare on Elm Street: The Dream Master and The Dream Child. He also wrote the novelizations for Tobe Hooper’s Invaders from Mars and Warlock, as well as several books for the Sabrina the Teenage Witch and Buffy the Vampire Slayer franchises.
Other young adult horror novels you may remember the name Joseph Locke from include Petrified, Kiss of Death, Game Over, 1-900-Killer, Vengeance, and Kill the Teacher’s Pet.
You can browse Ray Garton’s full bibliography over on his official website.
He wrote on his website when it launched, “Since I was eight years old, all I’ve wanted to be was a writer, and since 1984, I have been fortunate enough to spend my life writing full time. I’ve written over 60 books—novels and novellas in the horror and suspense genres, collections of short stories, movie novelizations, and TV tie-ins—with more in the works.”
“My readers have made it possible for me to indulge my love of writing and I get a tremendous amount of joy out of communicating with them,” Garton added at the time.
Ray Garton is survived by his longtime wife, Dawn.
Looking for New Episodes of “Chucky” on Peacock? Here’s What Changed
‘Mountain Man’ – Joe Manganiello Will Battle Zombies in Upcoming Horror Movie
‘The Blair Witch Project’ – Original Stars Release a Statement Asking Lionsgate for Residuals & Recognition
‘Trap’ – Official Trailer Previews a Wild New Horror Experience from M. Night Shyamalan
‘Halloween: Illustrated’ Review: Original Novelization of John Carpenter’s Classic Gets an Upgrade
You must be logged in to post a comment.