Date:17/12/2006 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/12/17/stories/2006121714870500.htm

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

14-hour brain surgery

Staff Reporter

To remove an eight-cm tumour

Chennai: An eight-cm tumour was recently removed from the brain in a complex surgery by team of neurologists at Kamakshi Memorial Hospital in Pallikaranai.

Dr. D. Krupa Shankar and his neurosurgical team performed the 14-hour surgery on a 47-year-old woman, who had come to the hospital following an attack of fits.

CT scan

A CT scan showed the large tumour, which was identified as `falx meningioma.'

The term refers to a benign tumour that grows from a thick membrane separating the two hemispheres of the brain.

The case was complicated because the tumour was bilateral (extending to both sides of the brain).

High-speed drill

Using a high-speed drill, doctors opened the front half of the skull and operated using a neurosurgery microscope.

The patient was discharged on the tenth day. A scan showed brain recovery and the complete removal of the tumour, Dr. Shankar said.