A 4-kg tumor was removed from a 12-year-old girl in Lviv
To remove a rare 20×20 cm thymolipoma, surgeons cut through six ribs, and anesthesiologists manually ventilated the lungs
In Lviv, surgeons at St. Nicholas Children’s Hospital performed a complex operation and removed from a 12-year-old girl a benign tumor weighing 4 kilograms, which became the largest neoplasm ever removed in the history of this medical institution.
It was a rare thoracic thymolipoma detected in early childhood, which usually grows slowly and does not produce pronounced symptoms for a long time. Initially the doctors followed a watchful waiting strategy, but over time the mass grew significantly, and in recent years persistent discomfort, severe shortness of breath and difficulty walking appeared. After a viral infection this spring the condition worsened sharply, making surgical intervention urgent.
At the time of admission to St. Nicholas Children’s Hospital the tumor measured 20×20 centimeters and weighed 4 kilograms, i.e., more than 11% of the child’s body weight.
The giant thymolipoma completely compressed the right lung, while the left worked only partially: approximately 25–30% of lung tissue remained functional. Additionally, the tumor shifted the heart into the left subaxillary area and caused spinal curvature, which constituted a direct indication for urgent surgery.
The medical team, led by pediatric surgeon and the hospital’s medical director Oleksandr Kalinchuk, noted that the procedure was extremely complex: due to severe compression of the airways and heart the mechanical ventilator could not provide adequate ventilation, so the anesthesiologists had to perform manual ventilation. To access the tumor the surgeons incised 6 ribs.
The operation lasted about 3 hours and was completed successfully, with virtually no blood loss.
Immediately after the procedure the patient’s condition began to improve rapidly: the heart returned to its anatomical position, and the compressed right lung began to expand and regain function. Symptoms of hypoxia and shortness of breath are gradually disappearing.
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