Patients suffering from cancer of the oesophagus can now have tumours removed through a new cutting edge operation introduced at Mater Dei Hospital just four weeks ago.
The procedure, known as Minimally Invasive Oesophagostomy (MIO) is now being offered to patients at Mater Dei Hospital. As the name implies, the operation is far less invasive than the procedure that was used up until just four weeks ago. The miracle that is happening in the operating theatre bears the signature of two surgeons who specialise in the removal of this particular kind of cancer. Jo Etienne Abela and Clifton Caruana have been carrying out this new procedure for the last month and so far the results are promising.
"Being far less invasive than previous operation techniques, patients can go home literally after a week or so. The healing process is far shorter and the incision wounds, being much smaller, also heal quickly," Mr Abela explained.
The Malta Independent on Sunday went to meet three patients who have had their tumour removed through this new operation. Surgeon Jo Abela introduced us to Luciano, Patrick and Vincent, the first three of four patients who have undergone MIO.
The MIO procedure takes five hours and consists of the removal of the oesophagus, or part of it. The procedure involves keyhole surgery and its main advantage is that it is less invasive on the body of the patient.
"The oesophagus is a very delicate organ as it touches three main parts of the body: the neck, chest and stomach," Mr Abela explained, as he demonstrated how the procedure is carried out using a dummy.
Before MIO was introduced, the operation had to be performed through major incisions in the chest, upper stomach and neck.
Tumours of the oesophagus can be quite aggressive and, as Mr Abela explained, the symptoms are often very generic. "That is what makes this cancer particularly dangerous. Sometimes the symptom can be as simple as heartburn or patients start noticing that they are feeling full after very little food. When we see patients who are experiencing severe symptoms, it means that the cancer is at an advanced stage."
Luciano, a patient who had an MIO very recently, said that he had not been aware of any particular symptoms and that it was only through check-ups that he had received news.
Cancer of the oesophagus is the 14th most common cancer in Europe. It affects one in every 55 males and one in every 115 females. All the patients who have had this surgery in Malta are male and some 10 or 12 patients require the operation every year.
The MIO reduces the incisions in the body from 80 centimetres to 21 centimetres and recovery time is also reduced from two weeks to one. Mr Abela explained that, apart from the recovery time, it should be noted that, with smaller incisions, the body can heal more quickly and the risk of a post-surgery infection is reduced.
Patients Vincent and Luciano had to have chemotherapy before having surgery. Now that their operations have been successful, they will probably be required to complete the chemotherapy treatment later on.
"Another thing that makes this new procedure so special is that, due to the short recovery period, the patients do not feel too exhausted to undergo chemotherapy. Before this new procedure, we would have patients who have to stop chemotherapy because the operation had left them feeling too exhausted."
Health Minister Chris Fearne visited the three patients and surgeon Jo Etienne Abela. He said that this cutting-edge operation will have Maltese healthcare competing with the top hospitals in Europe. "It is all part of the National Cancer Plan which is due to be published in September", said Mr Fearne. "This is not just about improving and adding more medicines to the government's registry, but is also about improving procedures and making such operations more available in Malta."
Some of the patients affected by this type of cancer had to go abroad to undergo surgery. "But now it's Malta who can teach other countries about this kind of surgery," Mr Abela added.
This new surgery is just the latest addition to the list of procedures and medicines to treat cancer which the government is introducing. Later this year, the National Cancer Plan will be published and, as Chris Fearne explained, Malta will once again compete with the best hospitals in Europe.
At the end of our visit, we were told that in the near future, the surgical staff intends to establish a self-help support group for those who have undergone an MIO.
from The Malta Independent http://ift.tt/2tzEM2t
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