HMC surgeons remove brain tumour with patient awake

Tribune News NetworkDohaA team of neurosurgeons at Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) has successfully performed a highly specialised brain tumour removal procedure resection of a complex brain tumour, known as a Glioma. The procedure, the first of a kind in Qatar, was performed with intra-operative neuro-monitoring and neuropsychological support. The 40-year old patient, who was wide-awake and conscious during the procedure, left the hospital, in good health, five days after the surgery.The procedure, which involved using the latest MRI and 3D brain mapping and imaging technology and lasted five hours, was performed by a team of 10 surgery professionals led by Dr Ghaya Al Rumaihi, neurosurgery and neuro-intervention consultant at HMC. The team comprised Dr Arun R. Sowran, neurosurgery specialist; Dr Kishor Kumar, anesthesia consultant; Dr John Berkins, neuropsychology consultant; Dr Abdullah O. Olayyan and Dr Muhsin Khan, both resident physicians at the Neurosurgery Department; Mohammad Al Ghazu, brain electrophysiologist; in addition to surgery nursing team led by Najlaa Fathi and anesthesia technicians.The surgery had to be performed with the patient conscious due to the fact that the tumour was so close to lobe responsible for consciousness and speech in the brain, the patient needed to be kept interactive and responsive with the team, allowing the team to remove the tumour without inflicting any damage to critical areas of the brain.Commenting on the procedure, Dr Rumaihi said, "Not only was the multidisciplinary medical team able to surgically remove the second-degree tumour but also succeeded in reducing the epileptic seizures that the patient suffered as a result of this tumour, while maintaining brain functional skills thus improving the patient’s life quality. "We would like to thank the patient for the remarkable cooperation and responsiveness to the step-by-step probe of the brains communicative and memory functionalities, using newly introduced intraoperative equipment for language and motor monitoring of patient’s directly in their own mother tongue rather than having the monitoring data translated.”Speaking on the details of the procedure, Dr Rumaihi pointed out that the patient had been diagnosed with a tumour in the left lobe of the brain three years ago with subsequent low growth in size causing speech difficulties, episodes of epilepsy and sudden left arm paralysis. The surgery had to be performed with the patient wide-awake in order to keep intraoperative monitoring of language and brain cognition functions and mitigate associated risks.As for the technology used in the procedure, Dr Rumaihi stated that a high-tech GPS guided 3D system has been used to produce consecutive mappings to facilitate safe navigation in the area to be operated on without causing any damage to healthy brain cells. "A unipolar suction tube device to simultaneously drain fluids and blood was used. The device, which is used for the first time in surgery in Qatar, is equipped with a sensor in the forefront to retain the influx of nerve impulse to functional areas in the brain,” Dr Rumaihi added.The patient remained conscious and alert for most of the duration of the procedure. He felt no pain as the surgeons mapped the brain and performed the resection. The mutual trust and confidence between the patient and the team of surgeons were key to the success of this high precision procedure, she explained.Dr Rumaihi affirmed that neurosurgeons who single-handedly operate on similar cases, often fail to properly treat such complex cases. "Only with combined efforts and teamwork of multidisciplinary medical team we can ensure that patients get the comprehensive health care they need. What inspires us is that our success in this surgery offers hope to other patients with similar conditions and can rid them and their family members of the trouble of travelling abroad for treatment,” she concluded.