Man operated upon for brain tumour while he was entirely conscious

Bangalore: With a tumour pressing down his brain, doctors operated on Chetan Shiv Kumar while he was entirely conscious. Shiv Kumar had to stay alert and active throughout a craniotomy procedure to remove a tumour after being diagnosed for it on Sunday.

Chetan (34), an administrator, said, "It started as a headache while I was leaving the office and suddenly increased because of high blood pressure. I immediately went to the hospital and got some scans and X-rays. They didn't tell me until the next morning what was going on."

"They told me that the tumour would grow in the next three months. I didn't want to wait until then," he added. It was then that the newly wed from Vijayanagar chose to undergo an Awake Craniotomy. The procedure required Chetan to be awake and alert while surgeons poked and prodded through his cerebral cortex while under local anesthesia.

Satish Rudrappa, head, neurosurgery, Manipal Hospital, said, "He would've been left with a speech dysfunction and other problems had he been unconscious through the surgery."

Chetan, who is now resting at home, added, "I was never nervous or scared. Not when they told me I had a brain tumour, nor when I was in the operation room. I always tried to remain normal. So did my family."