An Australian man lived for 100 days with an artificial titanium heart while he awaited a donor transplant, the longest period to date of someone with the technology.

For decades, replacing a failing human heart meant waiting—often desperately—for a donor. But in a hospital in Sydney, that paradigm has begun to shift. Last November, surgeons at St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney implanted the BiVACOR Total Artificial Heart in a critically ill patient.

An Australian man made history by living for 100 days with an artificial titanium heart while awaiting a donor transplant, according to a March 12 report by CNN. The patient, in his 40s, underwent surgery at St Vincent's Hospital Sydney in November 2024 and reportedly became the first person worldwide to leave the hospital with the device in February.

An Australian man with severe heart failure received a metal heart and was well enough to be discharged from the hospital while he waited for a donor. He is now recovering successfully from heart transplant surgery.