机器人手术使青少年肾上腺肿瘤患者重返运动

Mazen Nadim wasn’t interested inrobotic surgeryto remove his肾上腺肿瘤at first. No scar, no deal, the 15-year-old insisted. After all, if he had to travel across the world for a life-changing surgery, Mazen at the very least wanted a “cool” scar that would impress his friends.

But as Mazen began to learn more about how a robotic surgery could help him recover faster and get him back to playing water polo, he began to consider the option.

An adrenal tumor diagnosis

Nearly a year before Mazen was faced with a decision regarding surgery, in May 2021, he contracted新冠肺炎. A few months later, he was still experiencing fatigue and chest pain, so he underwent a CT scan.

The scan revealed an 8 cm by 7 cm tumor in Mazen’s adrenal gland. This small gland next to the kidney makes hormones that help the body control heart rate, blood pressure and other important functions.

Mazen’s parents were devastated and anxious. They wanted the best medical care. They began considering hospitals far from their home in Cairo, Egypt, and consulting experts in Europe and the U.S.

As they researched, Mazen’s dad, Mohammed, became interested in robotic surgery. He read that surgeons could operate by controlling a joystick that moved a robotic surgical tool through hard-to-reach spaces, often allowing for a smaller incision. Because this can mean shorter and less painful recovery for the patient, robotic surgery seemed ideal for Mazen, an athlete who wanted to get back to sports.

当时，一家人正在考虑在英格兰寻求护理，他们问那里的外科医生是否可以选择机器人手术。不，外科医生告诉穆罕默德。机器人手术很少对孩子进行，在这种情况下，这是不可能的。最终，穆罕默德（Mohammed）和他的家人决定在美国的一家医院寻求Mazen的照顾，他们一直一遍又一遍地听到：MD Anderson。

前往MD Anderson进行癌症治疗

纳迪姆斯以前从未见过像MD Anderson这样的医院。感觉更像是一家酒店，而且更大得多。这很令人生畏，但是一旦他们遇到了Mazen的护理团队，他们就会感到宾至如归。

“Everyone was so nice,” Mazen says. “Not one person was mean or scary.”

首先，他们遇到了儿科肿瘤学家Douglas Harrison, M.D.，中心医疗主任MD Anderson的儿童癌症医院.

哈里森和他的团队想确认马祖的诊断。癌症很有可能是良性的。哈里森告诉他们：“我们将为这一希望。”

在第一次发现肿瘤和对MD Anderson的访问之间的两个月中，纳迪姆人感觉好像他们生活在一场噩梦中。但是现在他们感到希望。

“At MD Anderson, it just always felt like there was a way,” Mohammed says.

Blood samples and scans did, in fact, reveal that the tumor was benign. The family instantly felt a wave of relief and began preparing for the only treatment the tumor would require, surgery. They met with pediatric surgeon玛丽·奥斯汀（Mary Austin）Mohammed brought up the idea of robotic surgery.

Instead of saying no, Austin paused. She told the Nadims the pediatric surgery team had actually been considering robotic surgery for pediatric cancer cases. While many hospitals use robots in surgery for pediatric patients, few use it to operate on pediatric patients with cancer. She told him they would look into it and get back to him.

Undergoing robotic surgery for pediatric cancer

奥斯汀转向Naruhiko Ikoma，医学博士, a surgical oncologist. The two had performed pediatric surgeries together when Ikoma was a resident. Since then, Ikoma had become one of a few leaders in robotic surgery at MD Anderson. He performs nearly 90% of his operations using the robot and helped other surgeons start using them, too.

奥斯汀和伊科马一起回顾了马祖的CT扫描。Ikoma说：“虽然小儿手术不是我的专长，但我能够根据我以前的机器人手术经验清楚地设想手术将如何进行。”“通过与奥斯汀博士合作，我很高兴为马祖提供机器人手术。”

Mazen和他的家人很兴奋。机器人手术意味着Mazen的切口较小。他会站起来，走得更快。他可以早点进入游泳池，而且比他进行了开放手术，他会早几个月就回到水球。

In February, Mazen underwent surgery to remove the tumor. After the surgery, Mazen stayed in the hospital for two nights before eventually moving to the nearby house his parents rented during their stay in Houston. He initially woke up from the surgery with an aching pain. His care team helped him get up and walking and he was able to leave the hospital while taking minimal pain medications. As his incision began to heal, the pain soon subsided. He was up on his feet and walking that very same day.

“Everyone at MD Anderson was so helpful,” he says. “I’m really thankful for all of them.”

马祖（Mazen）从手术中康复了四个星期，再留在休斯敦。当他期待回家见他的朋友并参加体育运动时，他忍不住感到有些难过。

“I’m really going to miss this hospital,” he says.

Request an appointment at MD Anderson onlineor by calling 1-877-632-6789.