A 51-year-old British expat had been struggling with some kind of discomfort for a long time but she didn’t know she had a cyst — which had already taken up an entire area from her thigh up to her chest.
It was when she saw doctors at Prime Hospital that she was told she had a 42cm ovarian cyst.
“The patient, weighing 140kg, did not show other medical ailments. However, she complained of discomfort and uneasiness,” said Dr Talakere Usha Kiran, consultant gynaecologist at the hospital.
Nearly six months ago, ultrasound reports confirmed that a large cyst was growing inside her body. However, doctors decided to put the surgery on hold because of the risks associated with her weight.
“She was a high-risk patient to go ahead with surgical procedures. We decided to hold and undertake a weight loss program,” said Dr Kiran.
Though it was a massive cyst, it was found to be non-cancerous. But because it kept growing, the surgeon decided to conduct the surgery laparoscopically.
“To remove the entire cyst from the body, we have to make an incision as big as the cyst. In her case, it was not possible as the cyst had entered and occupied the empty spaces, and mobilisation of the patient was difficult because of the weight,” Dr Kiran said, adding that the recovery would have been difficult and would have taken a lot of time to heal.
A two-and-a-half-hour surgery was conducted, and with five laparoscopic cuts, the mass was taken out. Fifteen litres of fluid was first removed, and then the whole cyst — weighing 14kg, heavier than two average-size bowling balls — was extracted.
Dr Mohammed Arshad Ali, anaesthesia consultant at Prime Hospital, had to carefully administer the anaesthesia for the patient.
The woman has now been discharged and recovering well.
Dr Kiran has urged women to get their ovarian health checked regularly to prevent such complications, as some of them do not present with symptoms.
“It is very important for women to undergo ultrasound once in a while to address such issues. This British patient, for example, had not been aware of her ailment for a long time,” the doctor added.
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