United Hospital successfully performs rare surgery on bladder cancer patient

United Hospital recently completed a rare Radical Cystoprostatectomy with Orthotopic Neobladder Reconstruction Surgery.

Dr M A Zulkifl, senior consultant of the urology department at United Hospital and his team performed the surgery, reads a press release.

The patient, a 60-year-old male, was diagnosed with bladder cancer about one month ago. He was also suffering from diabetic, high blood pressure and a H/O heart attack (one stent in the heart).

He initially underwent endoscopic surgery called TURBT in another hospital to remove the bladder tumour.

The patient was later referred to Dr M A Zulkifl at UHL when it was found that the tumour was high-grade bladder cancer and spread deep inside the bladder muscle.

To save the patient life, a decision was made to do a surgery that will remove his entire bladder and prostate.

After bladder removal, normally patients can not pass urine through his/her normal passage.

Hence, a special type of bag system is attached to the tummy skin where urine accumulates.

But for this patient, Radical Cystoprostatectomy with Orthotopic Neobladder Reconstruction surgery was performed.

This means, after removal of the bladder, a new bladder was constructed with a segment of the small intestine (ileum), the release said.

One and a half feet of the small intestine was cut and isolated from the remaining intestine, keeping its blood circulation intact. Continuity of the remaining intestine was restored.

Then the isolated segment of the intestine was folded and stitched in a special technique to make a Neobladder. Both the ureters implanted into the newly constructed bladder and it is connected to the original urethra from inside and there was no artificial bag to fit on the skin.

As a result, the patient’s urine is now coming out normally through the normal passage and the patient no longer needs to carry an extra urine bag.

“It is a rare surgery, and it requires experienced and skilled surgery team support,” Dr M A Zulkifl said.

“Earlier, patients had to go abroad to avail such type of surgeries, but now we are doing this type of surgery in our country with great success,” he added.