The subject of this week's edition of "Professional: Shigoto no Ryugi" ("The Professionals") (NHK-G, Tuesday, 10 p.m.) is 56-year-old Chisato Nojiri, the leader of a special-project team that recently developed a new type of artificial heart.
Nojiri's work has suddenly attracted the attention of the world medical community now that the European Union has approved the heart's use in member countries.
Nojiri's accomplishment is also news in Japan, where heart disease is the second most common cause of death and heart transplants are still almost nonexistent. An artificial heart is not meant to be a permanent replacement. It is rather a makeshift measure until a suitable heart can be located for transplant.