New Delhi; In what is being said by doctors to be first such case in the world, a team of surgeons from BLK Super Speciality Hospital successfully removed a kidney tumour weighing a staggering 7 kg, while saving the organ which is unheard of in the medical history. Dr HS Bhatyal who performed this miraculous 6-hour-long surgery, salvaging 50% of the unaffected kidney, confirmed that this indeed was a rarest of rare case and potentially life threatening.
As a passionate medical practitioner, this case brings immense professional gratification for me, and I sincerely hope that this one surgery shall pave way for identification and treatment of many such unusual cases.” said Dr HS Bhatyal – Advisor and Senior Consultant, Urology, Andrology and Renal Transplant A tumour of this nature which is more than 10 cm can be fatal, due to the risk associated with sudden internal bleeding. In this case, the tumour weighed 7 kg and measured 40x25x20 cm in length, breadth& height, and from the sheer size of it, the tumour was potentially life threatening. There is no official medical record or report of such a giant tumour in which successful surgery was carried out by saving parts of un-involved kidney.
Prior to reaching the hospital, Kajal had been advised removal of the right kidney. Kajal then consulted Dr. Bhatyal who devised a strategy to not only get rid of the gigantic mass but also save part of the un-involved kidney. After thorough pre-operative evaluation, Dr. Bhatyal along with his team of 5 doctors planned a highly complicated surgery with extreme precision.
The tumour which had grown to a huge size was a threat for life of the patient due to its sheer size and location. Even a trivial injury to abdomen might have led to heavy internal bleeding and possibly it could have been fatal for the patient,” informed Dr. Bhatyal. Kajal came to the hospital with complaints of unexpected abdominal swelling. She had been gaining weight for the last six months and looked like a pregnant woman carrying triplets.
Abdominal Ultrasound Sonography followed by CECT abdomen, revealed the presence of a large tumour arising from the right kidney which is also known as Angiomyolipoma (AML) – benign tumour. In addition to this there were three more small tumors (AML) in the lower part of kidney. Extremely rare, the giant tumour was causing displacement in adjacent organs of the patient,” informed Dr. Bhatyal.
Imaging and a detailed study of the case was done which included Angiography of abdomen. This was done prior to the execution of the plan and every step was rehearsed to mitigate even the slightest chance of failure. Upon complete evaluation, the team decided to perform a surgery known as Partial Nephrectomy. It is a process where the malformation is removed and the uninvolved part of the kidney is saved. Meticulous and painstaking surgical procedure followed in terms of removal of such a huge vascular mass.
The tumour had made upper 50% of the right kidney its host, so the team had to check vital arteries supplying blood and oxygen to the kidney and differentiate with those that were directing blood to the tumour. The other three small tumours were also removed to prevent similar kind of growth in the salvaged part of kidney in future. Finally, the operation was carried out successfully and Kajal received a new lease of life.