WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT
A day-old baby born with a rare tumour behind his eye that could cause him to be forever blind had his sight saved after a delicate surgery.
The operation took place in Cairo, Egypt, where ophthalmologist Dr Ashraf Abdel Salam performed the complex procedure at Ain Shams University’s Faculty of Medicine. The story was reported on 19th October.
According to Dr Abdel Salam, the newborn was brought in just hours after birth with severe swelling around one eye, and urgent scans revealed an extremely rare tumour.
The tumour had formed while the foetus was still in the mother’s womb, a condition that has only been documented in a few cases worldwide, Dr Abdel Salam said.
The medical team realised that every minute could determine whether the infant would ever be able to see, so they rushed the newborn to surgery.
Dr Abdel Salam said the procedure was performed under a surgical microscope using precision instruments to remove the tumour completely while protecting the fragile nerve fibres.
He explained that the true success was not only in removing the mass but also in preserving a large portion of the optic nerve intact.
During the operation, the child’s eye reportedly began to move once the tumour was extracted, and moments later, he opened his eyes for the first time.
Dr Abdel Salam described it as the happiest moment of his professional life and called it a “medical miracle” for the baby.
He said: “It wasn’t just a successful operation, but a purely human scene in which I felt that God had granted us the blessing of saving his sight at the right time.”
Following the surgery, the infant’s condition was described as stable, with doctors monitoring his visual response and growth closely.
Dr Abdel Salam, who trained in Canada and the United Kingdom and holds a fellowship from the Royal College of Surgeons of Great Britain, has more than 30 years of experience in orbital and eyelid surgery.
He urged parents to have their babies’ eyes examined immediately after birth, warning that early detection is the key to preventing blindness.
He concluded that the moment the baby opened his eyes after surgery was “a reminder that one minute can change the future of a child and the life of an entire family.”
To find out more about the author, editor or agency that supplied this story – please click below. Story By: Joseph Golder, Sub-Editor: Marija Stojkoska, Agency: Newsflash
The Ananova page is created by and dedicated to professional, independent freelance journalists. It is a place for us to showcase our work. When our news is sold to our media partners, we will include the link here.
