64-year-old with end-stage cancer gets second lease of life

A 64-year-old man from Nanded in Maharashtra who was suffering from end-stage lung cancer has got a second lease of life at the Asian Cancer Institute.

The patient suffered from Superior Vena Cava (SVC) syndrome, an oncological emergency in lung cancer patients, which causes blockage in big vessels that drains blood away from the head, neck, arms, upper chest into the heart.

The patient, Anant Bichewar, was a non-smoker and led a healthy life. He was jolted out of his usual routine due to sudden facial puffiness.

He dismissed this symptom by attributing it to lack of sleep. To his dismay, his health deteriorated further as he was breathless and lost oodles of weight. Soon, the patient found it difficult to do his daily chores with ease.

His world turned upside down as he would get breathless after walking, and unable to eat. The patient ran from pillar to post but nothing seemed to improve his condition. His family consulted various medicos and he even underwent biopsy and chemotherapy at a private hospital in Hyderabad but in vain.

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However, the patient was then referred to Dr Suhas Aagre, Consultant Medical Oncologist and Hemato-Oncologist, who helped him breathe freely. Dr Agare, along with Dr Mubarakunnisa Tonse, Consultant Medical Oncologist and Dr Ashank Bansal, Consultant Neuro and Vascular Interventional Radiologist, successfully saved the man’s life.

"The patient came in an emergency with symptoms such as facial swelling, breathing difficulty with low oxygen saturation, and headache. A PET-CT scan showed a tumour in the right upper lobe of the lung with bulky mediastinal lymph nodes causing SVC syndrome along with bone metastasis suggestive of stage IV lung cancer. The SVC is a large vein in the upper body that drains blood away from the head, neck, arms, and upper chest and into the heart,” said Dr Agare.

“In December 2021, my father’s face appeared to be swollen and we took him to a local doctor who prescribed medication, but his condition didn’t improve. We visited various hospitals in Nanded and even cardiologists performed some tests and gave medications. Still, his health kept worsening. Later, we did a CT scan that showed a tumour, and we went to Hyderabad and that is how cancer was detected. Then, he started having breathing difficulty and he was put on oxygen therapy, and we travelled to Mumbai. After treatment, his condition improved, and swelling disappeared,” the patient’s son, Swapnil Bichewar, said.

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