Irkutsk Surgeons Remove Giant Tumor from Newborn

A team of pediatric surgeons from the Irkutsk Ivano-Matreninskaya Hospital performed a unique operation to remove a large teratoma from a newborn boy. The tumor, which occupied almost the entire front part of the chest — from the subclavian area to the diaphragm — was detected as early as the 30th week of pregnancy during a 3D ultrasound. This was reported in the medical institution«s Telegram channel.

The child was born on October 24 at the Regional Perinatal Center and was immediately transferred to the Department of Anesthesiology and Resuscitation No. 2 of the Ivano-Matreninskaya Hospital. The tumor was compressing the lungs and heart, causing severe respiratory failure. The doctors warned: without surgery, there was no chance of survival.

After five days of intensive preparation, when the baby»s condition was stabilized, the lead surgeons of the team — Head of Surgical Department No. 2 Andrey Rasputin and Vladislav Cheremnov — performed a two-hour, extremely complex operation. The intervention lasted 2 hours and involved 6 medical workers. The main risk was the location of the mass: it was tightly attached to the heart and blood vessels, including the superior vena cava, which posed a threat of massive bleeding.

“If we had not removed the tumor, the child«s probability of survival would have been zero,” noted Andrey Rasputin.

After the successful intervention, the respiratory failure disappeared. The baby underwent rehabilitation, feels well, and has already been discharged home with his mother Victoria.

Mediastinal teratoma is an extremely rare pathology, occurring in only 4–6% of children with such tumors. This case became one of the largest in the region in recent times.

“When I gave birth, they could speak seriously with me, and I was told directly that it was such a large teratoma that the outcome could be anything. They explained to me that the first 24 hours after the surgery are the most critical,” the boy«s mother said. “Once the intervention is over, everything else depends on the child, how much he wants to live, how resilient he is. And at that time, I felt as if I had fallen into a black hole, it was very difficult. But my son really wants to live; he is a true fighter.”