Doctors open skull to remove ‘giant’ cyst from 41-year-old woman’s brain

Doctors at a private hospital claim to have successfully removed a large cyst from the brain of a 41-year-old woman.




"The cyst — 8cm x 8cm in size and weighing around 200gm — was found in the portion of the brain, which controls speech and limb movement. Both functions were impaired prior to the surgery but now there is significant improvement," said Dr Mukesh Pandey, senior neurosurgeon at the Faridabad-based Asian Institute of Medical Sciences.

To remove the the cyst, he added, they opened the skull of the patient. "We removed the cyst from the left side of the patient's brain without breaking or damaging the soft tissues of the vital organ," Pandey added.
The investigation into the origin of cyst revealed it was formed due to a parasitic infection. It happens when the patient comes in direct contact with animals infected by Echinococcus, a parasite, or because of eating unhygienic, contaminated food.
Doctors said cysts caused by such an infection are usually soft and relatively small in size.

"This type of hard structure and size was not reported in medical literature earlier," said Pandey said.

Another neurosurgeon Dr Kamal Verma said one way to avoid the parasite was by keeping your surroundings clean, ensuring sanitation and clean drinking water.

Shanti Devi, the patient, lives in Faridabad. Her husband is a truck driver in a transportation company.

"After I was told about my wife's condition, I thought her survival would be difficult. But now I am extremely thankful to the doctors for her successful operation," said the patient's husband, Mintlal Yadav.

The couple had received financial support from the hospital as well as the manager of the transportation company Yadav has been working in.

"My mother was unable to talk to me or recognise me earlier, but after the operation, she can see everything clearly," said the couple's 15-year-old son.