WASHINGTON, Aug 7 (Xinhua) -- A University of
Cincinnati surgeon recently performed what is believed to be the world's first
pediatric laparoscopic liver surgery, a specialized procedure for removing
cancerous liver tumors without the need for a major incision.
According to a statement released by the university
on Monday, Mark Thomas, MD, an assistant professor and transplant surgeon at UC,
performed the operation in a 2-year-old boy with liver cancer on May 24 at La
Raza Pediatric Medical Hospital in Mexico City.
Liver cancer is rare in children, with less than 150
cases diagnosed each year compared to more than 18,000 in adults, and the
disease is often misdiagnosed as constipation, food intolerance or anorexia
until it is in advanced and difficult-to-treat stage.
This patient's symptoms had been dismissed as such
for several months before physicians confirmed he had hepatoblastoma of the
liver, a type of cancer that starts in the organ's cells(hepatocytes) and
develops into one or multiple tumors. Thomas was invited to the hospital to
perform the patient's surgery.
Laparoscopic (minimally invasive) surgery is a method
of operating inside the abdomen through small, tube-like ports using a
fiber-optic light source, camera and specialized instruments. Known as
laparoscopic liver resection, this procedure requires incisions so small (about
three inches) that they leave only minimal scarring.
Two months post-surgery, the patient is doing well
and is expected to have a full recovery after several additional rounds of
chemotherapy.
Thomas says the procedure is a safe, effective
alternative to traditional open surgery for liver cancer which requires up to
a30-inch incision.
It is also available for patients with advanced liver
disease who can not tolerate the standard operation. The minimally invasive
laparoscopic approach is most often used to remove liver tumors and treat other
liver diseases.
Laparoscopic liver resection results in less pain and
faster recovery times for patients, Thomas explains. Adult patients can usually
start eating again a day after surgery and are back to work within one or two
weeks. Enditem
