Unique surgery saves Pinay cancer patient in UAE

Published September 24, 2012 4:30pm

A unique kind of medical procedure called "keyhole surgery" saved a 44-year-old Filipina cancer patient in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The keyhole or laparoscopic surgery on the Filipina was the first of its kind in the UAE and only the fourth in the world, a report of the news site Gulf News said last week.

Dr Hafeez Rahman, a laparoscopic and gynaecology surgeon, and founder of International Modern Hospital (IMH) Dubai, said the Filipina patient had uterine cancer.

Rahman said the Filipina had a cancerous lymph node on the inferior vena cava (IVC), a large vein that delivers blood to the heart from the lower extremities, pelvis, and abdomen. The doctor explained that a traditional open and invasive procedure could have been fatal in the Filipina's case.

According to the website of the University of Southern Califonia, laparoscopic surgery is a "minimally invasive" type of surgery where surgical procedures are executed with the help of a video camera and several thin instruments.

The camera transmits an image of the organs onto a television monitor. The video camera becomes a surgeon’s eyes in laparoscopy surgery.

The benefits of laparoscopic procedures include:

less post-operation discomfort because the incisions are smaller
quicker recovery times
shorter hospital stays, and
smaller scars

“Almost 100 percent of all surgeries should be done through keyhole surgery whether in gynaecology, urology or major cancer surgeries. This is for the benefit of the patient,” Rahman told Gulf News. - VVP, GMA News

Tags: unitedarabemirates, pinoysinuae, cancer