Patient talks, sings as doctors remove tumour from his brain
dubai — Sayed Khorshed Alam, a 50-year-old Bangladeshi man, was shattered when he was told he had a tennis ball size tumour in his brain. He went to Thumbay Hospital in Ajman on a wheelchair as he complained of weakness of the right lower limb followed by the right upper limb, which he had been experiencing since July 2017.
Examinations revealed that the weakness on his right leg was more than that of his hand. “He could not walk without support and his weakness increased gradually and that’s how Alam became wheelchair bound, Dr Ishwar Chandra Premsagar, consultant (incharge) – neurosurgery, told Khaleej Times.
Alam got so nervous on learning about the tumour that he refused to get a brain surgery done and started making frantic calls to his folks in Bangladesh. “I then reassured him that I had done a
The awake brain surgery not only avoided increase in weakness but rather there was improvement in weakness on the very same day. The side effects of general anesthesia were also avoided.” Dr Ishwar Chandra Premsagar, consultant neurosurgeon, Thumbay Hospital, Ajman
number of such surgeries back in New Delhi and it was perfectly safe. I then told him that we will do the surgery while he is awake and that he stands a chance of standing on his feet in just a few days after the surgery. This is what convinced Alam and he agreed to get the surgery done.”
Little did Alam know that it would turn out to be a miraculous surgery and that he would start walking the very next day of the surgery!
Alam recently underwent a twohour brain surgery and during the course of it spoke and sang with his doctors at Thumbay Hospital – Ajman while they were busy removing the tennis ball-sized tumour from his brain.
Known as ‘awake brain surgery’ this procedure requires the patient to be awake, alert and cooperative, while doctors during this procedure ask questions and monitor the activity in the patient’s brain as he responds.
Contrast MRI of the patient’s brain revealed a large tumour on the left side of brain which controls the movement of the right side of the body, particularly the leg. The team led by Dr Premsagar decided to perform awake brain surgery. “The tumour was very close to the area controlling the movement of the body’s right side,” said Dr Premsagar.
The patient was operated on while he was awake, talking, singing and moving his hands and legs. Throughout the procedure of removal of the tumour, he was encouraged to talk and move his right hand and leg by Dr Vinay, the neuroanaesthetist, to ensure that the procedure wasn’t causing further weakness or any speech problem.
“The advantage of this type of surgery is that the surgeons can monitor the progress during the operation. The procedure also reduces the risk of damage to functional areas of your brain that could affect limb movements or speech, because as long as the patient doesn’t experience further weakness or inability to speak, the surgeons are reassured that they are on the right track,” said Dr Premsagar.
Soon after the surgery, the patient drank water, and fruit juice a little later. He had a full meal in the
How it was done
The bone of skull just overlying the tumour was removed by Craniotomy, under local anesthesia. Then the brain tumour was removed with his active cooperation. It was taken out bit-by-bit with special machine called CUSA. CUSA removes the tumour silently without affecting the surrounding brain and with minimum bleeding. After total removal of tumour, the bone was fixed back as before. evening. He was able to stand up the next morning and started walking with support, soon after. “The awake brain surgery not only avoided increase in weakness but rather there was improvement in weakness on the very same day. The side effects of general anesthesia were also avoided. He was discharged from the hospital completely recovered, demonstrated by his ability to stand on his weak limb alone, without any support,” Dr Premsagar said.
“I am grateful to the doctors at Thumbay Hospital Ajman for the treatment. I had given up hopes of being able to walk on my own ever again, prior to the surgery. Now I am also able to run,” said a happy Alam.
saman@khaleejtimes.com