Woman saved as docs take out 3.5KG cancer tumour

The large mass kept growing inside the abdomen. Another two to three months without treatment and it would have been too late.”

Dr Naveed Ahmed, surgeon

abu dhabi — A 50-year-old woman who had been carrying a massive cancerous tumour in her abdomen was “weeks away from death” when doctors in Abu Dhabi saw her condition. The specialists managed to remove the 3.5kg growing tumour just in time to save her life.

With the tumour that made her look pregnant, the woman was not able to get help from several hospitals because of the size of the mass and the complexity of her condition. Then, finally, she was admitted to the Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi (CCAD).

The patient began experiencing symptoms almost a year ago. She lost her appetite; had bouts of diarrhoea; and began experiencing rapid weight loss, fatigue, and excessive bloating.

“My life had changed completely. I could not sleep and felt uncomfortable all the time. It was debilitating,” she said, adding that the tumour caused an unnatural bulge, making it difficult for her to sleep or carry out daily chores.

A biopsy report confirmed that she had pancreatic adenocarcinoma, a cancer that starts in the ducts of the pancreas.

Elaborating on the case, Dr Naveed Ahmed, a surgeon at the digestive disease institute at CCAD, said: “She was quite weak when she arrived at the hospital and her stomach had expanded to an extent that she felt pregnant. This is because the large mass kept growing inside the abdomen.

“Another two to three months without treatment and it would have been too late.” Doctors at the hospital performed a near-total pancreatectomy, in which a large incision was made to remove a big part of her pancreas. Surrounding blood vessels also had to be reconstructed.

The patient is now undergoing chemotherapy and will require follow-up checks for monitoring.