07 July 2023 , 10:15
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Surgeons have removed a massive 3lb tumour growing on a man's jaw in a delicate eight-hour operation to rebuild his face.
The 3 lbs benign growth - seen here in grim pictures taken before the op - was so large that the patient had trouble eating and even breathing.
During the operation - carried out at Galeazzi-Sant'Ambrogio hospital in Milan, Italy - surgeons had to remove part of the 38-year-old patient's jaw.
They managed to rebuild his face using a curved slice of bone taken from the fibula bone in his leg, according to local media.
Surgeons shaped the bone to reproduce the exact curvature of his jaw.
Baby boy has spent his life in hospital as doctors are 'scared' to discharge him
A CT scan of Angelo's jaw (Newsflash)
Over a kilo of tissue was removed from his jaw (Newsflash)The tumour was first diagnosed 20 years ago but medics only decided to remove it when it became too large for the patient - named only as Angelo - to live with.
Surgeons first had a trial operation using CT scans and a 3D printer to replicate the man's jaw and the tumour.
Lead surgeon Professor Alessandro Baj explained: "It is a demanding and complex operation, also given the considerable size of the mass, but it presents a low possibility of complications, especially in young patients, as was the case here."
The team of medics involved in the operation at the Galeazzi Sant'Ambrogio Hospital (Newsflash)Angelo's recovery will be followed closely by doctors before he can have further ops for tooth implants and to rebuild the muscles of his mouth.
Finally, cosmetic surgeons will remove the scarring and excess skin from the tumour.
In May, the Mirror reported on a young man who spent three years managing the devastating effects of his grade two brain tumour.
Izaac Roberts endured debilitating seizures, loss of speech and numbness down one side of his body before the operation that saved his life.
At the beginning of this year, the 18-year-old became the youngest patient to ever brave an awake craniotomy at Royal Stoke Hospital, with the aim of ultimately curing his symptoms and saving his life.
But two hours into the high-risk brain surgery, Izaac suddenly suffered a seizure and neurosurgeon Mr Chan was left with a dilemma - continue operating and risk life-long complications or wait for it to pass?