Dubai: A 6.5kg uterine tumour, the size of two full term babies, was removed from a 42 year-old Bahraini patient by a team of laparoscopic surgeons at the International Modern Hospital (IMH) in Dubai.
The excised mass, which reached the patient’s rib area, is possibly the largest fibroid removed laparoscopically in the UAE.
The patient had a bloated stomach and abdomen for the past few years, which made it difficult for her to walk or breathe easily. She had previously undergone High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) — (a procedure that gives off high frequency sound waves to shrink the fibroids) in Germany, which failed, as she waited for nearly two years for the fibroid to shrink. The patient was even told by doctors in Germany and Belgium that even through open surgery they would not be able to save her uterus. She was then referred to IMH, where other options were discussed after which, she underwent fibroid removal through laparoscopic (key hole) surgery.
Dr Nikita Trehan headed the team of doctors, which removed the fibroid.
“HIFU and Uterine Fibroid Embolisation (UFE) are stopgap procedures. Definite procedures for these problems would be laparoscopic surgery, which could be a fibroid or uterus removal procedure depending upon the reproductive desires of the patient,” said Dr Trehan.
In this case, the patient was unmarried and wanted to preserve her fertility, so a uterus saving fibroid removal keyhole operation was undertaken, she explained.
The patient has completely recovered post-surgery, and will be flying back to her home country soon.
“At first I was apprehensive on the laparoscopic procedure, but I put my faith in hands of Dr Nikita Trehan of IMH, I am grateful that I did it and I am very happy with the outcome,” said the patient.
Dr Kishan Pakkal, CEO of International Modern Hospital said that at IMH, we encourage taking up complex and emergency patients of all specialities. “This also works in line of supporting the vision of the leaders of Dubai by encouraging medical tourism and taking up challenging cases thereby making Dubai as preferred centre of choice for all keyhole procedures,” he added.
