Surgeons have removed the world’s largest brain tumor after a man left the growth for more than 20 years because he didn’t have enough money to undergo surgery.
When the tumor was removed, it weighed a whopping 5kg (11lbs), which surgeons said is bigger than any ever recorded in health reports.
31-year-old Sakthivel’s surgeon said that the tumor (other sources reported was cancerous) was almost the same size as his head.
Sakthivel is now recovering well from the surgery.
Dr. J Srisaravanan, Sakthivel’s neurosurgeon, said: “’The patient came to our hospital in the second week of May with a huge growth on his head and restrictions of neck movement.
“He has [had] the tumour for around 20 years, but as his brother had died due to some other surgery he feared to undergo surgery to remove the tumor.”
Even though Sakthivel suffered from the tumor since he was only 11 years old, he never sought medical treatment as he didn’t have enough money for surgery. He was also scared as his brother passed away during an operation.
But when the tumor became almost as big as his head, he decided to seek medical attention.
The average human head weighs from 10 to 11lbs or around 5kilos.
“We went through medical literature, and have not found anything larger than the present case of Sakthivel,” Dr. Srisaravanan said.
“[Sakthivel] had social inhibitions due to the large swelling and didn’t want to meet people.
“Moreover, when he approached private hospitals, they asked [500,000 rupees] –which was beyond his means – for the surgery to get the tumor removed. So he came to us.
“The tumor was almost equal in size to his head. I had never come across such a big tumor in the head in my career of 15 years in neurosurgery.”
What’s your take on this? Let us know in the comments section and SHARE this with your friends and family!