News & Media

Man gets fresh life after removal of one lung

2024-03-29

KOCHI: A 40-year-old man who used to experience breathlessness and cough out blood since 2011 is now able to breathe freely and even climb stairs after doctors successfully removed one lung. Within five days, he was discharged from hospital free of any infection. It was about eight years ago, that the patient started coughing out blood and began to experience breathlessness. Thereafter, he developed fever and pneumonia requiring injectable antibiotics. It became a regular feature every two-three months and most of his life revolved around hospitals.

Eight months ago, the patient met Dr Vineet Alexander, pulmonologist at Sunrise Hospital, who found a tumour in the left lower part of one of his lungs and diagnosed an uncommon condition called carcinoid, a slow-growing cancer. He was referred to cardiothoracic surgeon Dr Nasser Yusuf, who advised immediate removal of half of the lung as that part of the lung was destroyed and not functioning. "It was the source of recurrent infection. We found that removal of the permanently damaged part would cure him of his disease. His family and friends found that removal of the permanently damaged part would cure him of his disease. His family and friends discouraged him stating that following thoracic surgery very few survive," said Dr Yusuf.

Though his condition deteriorated, the patient decided to return to Gulf without undergoing surgery. But his condition worsened, and he returned to India and consulted various doctors in Bengaluru and Puducherry. He was told that surgery carried considerable risk and even the possibility of death.

He then came back to Sunrise Hospital, where doctors re- examined him and found that the carcinoid tumour had rapidly grown and the whole of the left lung was affected. The only option was surgery, but the risk had become 10- fold as the entire lung would have to be removed.