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 Dr Pradnya Bendre

Mumbai: 7-month-old beats Covid, tumor

DTMT NETWORK

Doctors at Bai Jerbai Wadia Hospital, Mumbai, have given a new lease of life to a 7-month-old baby boy by removing a 15 cm tumor from his chest. The boy had a rare teratoma tumor that affects 1 in 4,000 people.

His condition got complicated after he also tested Covid positive and was having breathing complications. The procedure was done by the doctors recently.

Dr Pradnya Bendre, Professor, and Head of Paediatric Surgery, Bai Jerbai Wadia Hospital, said, “On arrival in an emergency on April 15, 2021, the boy was having severe breathing difficulties, couldn’t accept the feeds, and kept crying.”

A detailed scan performed on him revealed that there was a huge rare tumor of 15 cm length in the anterior mediastinum, that is the front of the heart, occupying the entire chest and extending to both the thoracic cavity densely stuck to  atrium, aorta (biggest artery in the body), and lung vessels.

It affects 1 in 4,000 peopl. 1 to 4 % of these teratomas occur in anterior mediastinum which generally manifest in the second or third decade of life.

Dr Bendre added, “Moreover, on admission, it was also confirmed that the patient was Covid positive, was on steroids and NIV (non-invasive ventilation) for 2 days. After aggressive Covid treatment and turning negative, the patient was scheduled to undergo clamshell thoracotomy.”

“Clamshell thoracotomy involves incision across the entire anterior chest from right to left to expose both the lungs and heart simultaneously. The surgery lasted for 5 hours and the patient was shifted to the ICU. He was on a ventilator for 6 days, and was gradually weaned off the ventilator,” added the doctor.

“After 12 days, the patient was shifted to the general ward. He doesn’t require oxygen support now and tolerates feeds and is now ready to go home. He would have lost his life due to respiratory distress, if not treated at the right time. Now, he has been asked to come for regular follow-ups to monitor the recurrence of tumor, growth, development, and respiration,” explained Dr Bendre.

“Child was in severe respiratory distress needing immediate stabilisation as well as extremely intricate and challenging surgery. Though his Covid positive status  complicated the scenario, it neither stopped nor winced our team. We took right decisions at the right time without even thinking about his financial status and saved his life,” said Dr Minnie Bodhanwala, CEO of Wadia Hospital.

 


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