Raffles Hospital Treats Rare Tumour

For 25-year-old Ms Wu Xiao Fen, from the Yi minority from China, the pain on her head is not just a figure of speech. Eight years ago, a tumour started growing on her head. Today, it covers 30% of her scalp.

On behalf of Chinese Ambassador H.E.Zhang Xiaokang, Mr Gong Chunsen, Counsellor, and Mr Chang Haitao, Third Secretary, from the China Embassy in Singapore visited Ms Wu Xiao Fen and her mother to send them their good wishes. In picture, from left to right: Mr Chang Haitao, Dr Diarra Boubacar, Mr Lawrence Lim (General Manager, Raffles Hospital), Ms Wu ’s mother, Mr Gong Chunsen and Ms Wu Xiao Fen.	Ms Wu’s scans show that the tumour has grown to 14.0cm by 11.0cm in size. The tumour has also made two indentations on to the skull.

 

In October last year, Medical Directors of Raffles Hospital, Prof Walter Tan and Dr Yang Ching Yu, together with a team of plastic surgeons, went on a medical mission to Kunming. While they were there, they attended to Ms Wu and found her suitable for surgery. However, due to the complexity of the surgery, the team felt it would be best to do it with a multi-disciplinary medical team.

Ms Wu was suffering from a malignant tumour, arising from the scalp and skin. It had eroded through her skull bone. Prior to her operation, Ms Wu was in pain and her tumour bled constantly.

On 10 January, a team of three plastic surgeons led by Prof Walter Tan, Specialist in Plastic Surgery and Reconstructive Surgery, operated on Ms Wu to excise the tumour. The operation was then taken over by a team of neurosurgeons, led by Dr Ng Puay Yong, a sessional Neurosurgeon at Raffles Hospital, who worked to remove the affected cranial bone. During the third stage, the plastic surgeons reconstructed the huge defect with a full scalp rotation flap and skin graft.

“We had anticipated that the surgery could take up to eight hours to complete,” said Prof Walter Tan, “However, the multi-disciplinary team took less than four hours to complete the entire surgery. We are delighted that Ms Wu recovered so quickly.”

The surgery and hospital stay of approximately $56,000 is co-funded jointly by Raffles Hospital and the Asian Medical Foundation - the charitable arm of Raffles Medical Group.

Said Mr Lawrence Lim, General Manager of Raffles Hospital, “Ms Wu’s treatment represents a humanitarian effort of Asian Medical Foundation and Raffles Hospital, and a contribution to the close people-to-people relationship between Singapore and China.”