हिंदी
Patiala, 10 January 2024
The Department of Surgical Oncology, Fortis Cancer Institute at Fortis Hospital Mohali, has achieved yet another medical feat by successfully treating a 70-year-old woman suffering from Pseudomyxoma Peritonei (PMP) cancer through Cytoreductive Surgery (CRS) and HIPEC Surgery (Hyperthermic Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy). The case attains significance as PMP cancer is an extremely rare one with an incidence rate of approximately 1-2 per million a year.
The team of doctors led by Dr Jitender Rohila, Consultant, Surgical Oncology and Robotic surgeon, Fortis Hospital Mohali, treated the Patient through CRS HIPEC recently. CRS HIPEC has been established as the gold standard surgical treatment for PMP cancer. It is a combination of complex surgery and intraabdominal chemotherapy to eradicate advanced abdominal tumors.
PMP is a cancer of the abdomen that originates in the appendix and causes production of mucin, a jelly-like substance in the peritoneum (inner lining of abdomen). This causes extreme abdominal distension – bloating due to excessive jelly like fluid accumulation – and affects all the abdominal organs including intestines. Such patients also exhibit abdominal pain, loss of weight or appetite and sometimes, intestinal obstruction.
The Patient had severe abdominal swelling, changes in bowel habits and loss of appetite. She had also undergone a surgery for suspected ovarian cancer (ovarian mass and appendix had been removed – incomplete surgery) a few months ago at another hospital. Pathology review revealed a mucinous tumor with origin from appendix. Unable to get relief, she finally approached Dr Rohila at Fortis Mohali where medical examinations and the CT scan showed residual tumor with mucinous ascites (jelly-like substance in the abdomen) and tumor deposits in upper abdominal cavity, suggestive of PMP cancer.
Following discussions with the Tumour Board, Dr Rohila conducted CRS and HIPEC Surgery on the Patient. Cytoreductive Surgery (CRS) includes surgical removal of all disease from the abdomen while HIPEC Surgery involves administering heated chemotherapy in the abdomen inside the operation theatre after ensuring complete CRS.
Discussing the case, Dr Rohila, said, “It was a complex surgery which included bowel resection and removal of the tumour from the liver and intestines. The complete cytoreduction took around 9 hours. After the tumour was removed, HIPEC was performed for 90 minutes. The Patient had a smooth post-operative recovery and was discharged 14 days after the surgery. She has recovered fully & completed 7 months post-surgery and is disease free.”
