Vietnamese doctors conducted first-ever awake brain tumor surgery

Professor He and the patient talk after the awake brain tumor surgery on March 26.

Earlier this year, the patient, who had headache, numbness and weakness of arms, legs, hands and feet, got a medical checkup at a hospital in the central city of Hue and was diagnosed with brain tumor.

At the second checkup at Viet Duc Hospital, doctors found a 2x3 cm brain tumor in a position that affected the patient's motor function, causing his hand to become numb.

“The tumor can cause paralysis if the intervention is not careful in this area of the head”, said Professor He.

The doctors extracted the brain tumor after a 3-hour surgery. During the operation, the patient chatted, moved his limbs at the request of the doctors and even sang a song. After the surgery, the patient remained conscious. His health was stable, especially his hands were no longer numb.

According to Professor He, had the patient been completely anesthetized under the traditional surgery technique, physicians might not find out whether functional areas of language or movement are affected.

With the awake brain tumor surgery, the patient is only given anesthesia to avoid pain when getting incision, meanwhile the rest is fully awake.

"We cut the tumor as much as possible and still protect the speech and motor functions of the patient because the doctors identify the area of speech and movement", said Professor He.

Professor He said that the procedure of awake surgery may be conducted for many types of injuries in the brain and control risks, for example, of paralysis.