81-year-old Milton Wingert is now recovering at home after he underwent a surgery to have his huge cancerous tumor removed from his neck.
It was only six months ago when the elderly man from New Jersey was diagnosed with pleomorphic sarcoma, a type of soft tissue cancer that grows quickly – often in a few weeks or months. The mass grew big from just a small lump to a soccer ball.
Mr. Wingert went to two different surgeons to have the tumor removed but both turned him away as the procedure was too risky.
Fortunately, a New York doctor agreed to perform the surgery, fearing that the elderly man could suffocate to death if the tumor was not removed immediately.
In an interview with Daily Mail, Vern, Mr. Wingert’s brother, said that he first noticed a lump on his neck in the same month he was diagnosed, and it was only about the size of a ping pong ball.
When the lump grew bigger within a few weeks, he went to a doctor who diagnosed him with cancer.
“We could see kids pointing towards him like: ‘What’s this guy? What’s going on?’” Vern shared. “’Kids would make fun of him. But Milton responded very well to it.”
It was only five months ago when Wingert went to a doctor in Jersey City to schedule an appointment to get rid of the tumor. At that time, it was about the size of an apple.
“He showed up to the hospital and he was told at the hospital that the doctor had canceled the surgery because it was too risky.”
In September, he scheduled surgery with another doctor in Hackensack. However, the operation was canceled because the surgeon was worried the tumor had formed around the carotid artery, a major blood vessel.
If that artery was accidentally cut, Mr. Wingert would die.
The second surgeon in Hackensack reached out to Dr. Nazir Kahn from Mount Sinai Hospital, who agreed to do the operation.
Dr. Khan told Daily Mail: “When I saw him, I thought: ‘He can’t live this way.’ I thought: ‘He’s not going to survive much longer if we don’t get this removed.’”
At that time, the tumor was already about the size of a soccer ball.
The surgery took about 7 hours, and Mr. Wingert is now recovering at home. He will still be facing radiation and chemotherapy after Christmas.
Praying for your recovery, Mr. Wingert!
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Replaced!