Indian doctors remove 35kg ovarian tumour from mother-of-three

Nagamma, 46, had been suffering from excruciating pain for two years

Nagamma, 46, before doctors in India’s Andhra Pradesh state operated on her to remove an ovarian tumour weighing 35 kilograms. Photo: Dr K Madhavi

Doctors in India’s southern Andhra Pradesh state have operated on a woman to remove an ovarian tumour weighing 35 kilograms.

Nagamma, 46, who uses a single name, from Poluru village, was suffering from excruciating pain for the past two years.

The mother-of-three had consulted local doctors and was diagnosed with a small tumour in her ovaries. Doctors advised her to have to operation to remove it.

Ms Nagamma, who comes from a poor background, was scared of surgery. She did not seek more advanced medical help for financial reasons.

As time passed, the tumour grew large and Ms Nagamma’s stomach started ballooning.

It grew so big that she could not even move due to the weight, doctors said.

Ms Nagamma went to the Government Maternity Hospital in Tirupati district last month where doctors conducted several tests and established that the tumour in her left ovary had grown to the 40 centimetres in diameter.

They performed surgery on July 28 and removed the tumour in an hour-long operation, Dr K Madhavi, an obstetrician gynaecologist, who performed the surgery, said.

Ms Nagamma's right ovary was mildly enlarged, and doctors performed a hysterectomy.

“It is a case of ovarian tumour. The patient was suffering from it for the last two years and had gone to many hospitals. The patient was scared and could not afford private treatment. she had visited many government hospitals before she was referred here,” Dr Madhavi told The National.

“We performed MRI and other tests. The surgery was successful and the patient is recovering. We have received similar cases in the past but this is a very big mass. This is the first case when a tumour of this size has been removed,” she said.

The doctors believe that the tumour is most likely benign but are waiting for the pathology report for confirmation.