Surgeons at St. Pantaleon Hospital of the First Medical Association of Lviv performed a groundbreaking surgery: they removed the patient’s only kidney affected by a malignant tumor, performed its resection, and reimplanted the organ. This life-saving procedure preserved the life of 33-year-old Lviv resident Olha Nazarkevych.
A Unique Operation
Olha was born with a rare congenital anomaly – a single kidney. While it did not affect her quality of life, in May of this year, doctors diagnosed carcinoma – cancer of her only kidney. The tumor’s location made standard surgical removal impossible, and there was no time to wait for a donor organ.
“The tumor was located in a way that made removal impossible without taking out the kidney. We decided on an autotransplantation: first, we removed the kidney, performed a tumor resection outside the patient’s body, and then reimplanted the organ. The chances of success were 50/50, but we had no choice,” said Volodymyr Dmytriv, head of the urology department.
Surgery Outcomes
The operation was a success. Five months later, the patient is feeling well. Olha is immensely grateful to the medical team for their courage and professionalism. Thanks to this innovative approach, she avoided dialysis and the need for a donor kidney transplant.