25-year-old girl suffering from rare cancer gets new life at AIIM-Bhubaneswar

By Mahendra Darjee

Bhubaneswar, May 4: A group of young doctors at AIIMS-Bhubaneswar performed a rare surgery for a rare variety of Larynx (voice box) Cancer (Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma) to save the life of a young lady.

The 25-year-old lady from Jagatsinghpur district was afflicted with an advanced stage of the cancer at the junction of food and windpipe, causing difficulty in breathing and swallowing.

Unlike the usual variety of cancer, this was resistant to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. With progression of the diseases, the voice, respiration and food intake for the patient became challenging.

Prior to coming to AIIMS Bhubaneswar, the lady had consulted at multiple hospitals for around one year seeking treatment. With no other option in hand, to save her life, the surgeons operated the patient with a newer approach.

The group of 10 doctors comprising the department of ENT, surgical gastroenterology took 14 hours to perform the challenging procedure.

The ENT surgeon removed the voice box (Larynx), upper part of the windpipe (Trachea), Pharynx, upper part of food pipe (Esophagus) and part of the thyroid gland.

Gastrosurgeon dissected the colon and mobilized it into the neck through a tunnel made between the sternum (breast bone) and the heart connecting the base of tongue with the stomach, making a new food channel. Post operatively the patient was managed in intensitve care unit (ICU).

After two months of surgery, the patient is doing well with normal breathing and food intake.

AIIMS Bhubaneswar executive director Dr Ashutosh Biswas congratulated the team of doctors for this life saving surgery in a skillful way.

Dr Dillip Kumar Samal, associate professor of ENT, Dr Tanmay Dutta, assistant professor surgical gastroenterology and Dr Ajitesh Sahu, assistant professor (anaesthesia) led the procedure.