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A 35-year-old woman in Delhi, India, assumed that her strange weight gain pattern over the past few months had been caused by a stomach problem.
She gained 15 pounds, but couldn’t figure out what had caused it.
It was only after she finally received admission to a private clinic in the city that she could access the health care she needed.
After doctors ran ultrasounds and tests on her body, they discovered a massive tumor growing on her kidney. The woman had had an angiomyolipoma – a cluster of blood vessels, smooth muscle cells, and fat cells on the kidney – developing for the past two years.
At this point, the size of the tumor was inhibiting the woman’s kidney from functioning at full potential and threatening kidney failure.
Initially, her doctors wanted to remove her entire kidney, but then opted to tackle the tumor, hoping to preserve the lower half of her organ.
The woman’s main surgeon, Dr. Hardev Singh Bhatyal explained their decision, “Doctors usually remove the kidney along with the tumor in the majority of these cases as it is difficult to preserve a kidney. But we were confident we could save the blood vessel that supplies the lower part of the kidney.”
After six grueling hours of surgery, the woman’s tumor was removed – as well as three other growths that were potentially threatening her health – and the right half of her kidney is still well and functioning.
She is relieved to be rid of her problem and is incredibly grateful to her doctors.
