Man dies after docs remove 18-kg tumour from his stomach

Two days after doctors removed an 18-kg cancerous tumour from a 73-year old man's abdomen, the patient died of cardiac arrest on Monday.

Two days after doctors removed an 18-kg cancerous tumour from a 73-year old man's abdomen, the patient died of cardiac arrest on Monday.

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Bhagwati Prasad Sharma, an Ulhasnagar resident, was admitted to Saifee Hospital last week with a bulging stomach resembling that of a pregnant woman.

On Friday, doctors at the hospital conducted an open surgery on Sharma to remove the cancerous tumour, which was 18 inches in length. “The patient was admitted in the intensive care unit of the hospital after the surgery and died of cardiac arrest on Monday afternoon.

The case was rare given the size and age of the patient. The mortality rate in such cases is very high,” said Dr Anil Sanganeria, cancer surgeon, Saifee Hospital.

Doctors had to transfuse 15 units of blood to the patient while the surgery was being performed. Sharma’s tumour had expanded rapidly in three months. The tumour occupied the entire abdomen and pelvis and had pushed the intestines and kidney to one side, said doctors.

“Such huge tumours do not respond to chemotherapy or radiation,” said Dr Sharma. Sharma had consulted a private doctor in Ulhasnagar and another private hospital before getting admitted to Saifee Hospital.

“My father was having breathing trouble and pain in his abdomen. Doctor had mentioned to us about the risks involved in the surgery,” said Sharma’s son Manish.