ACCIDENTAL EXAMINATION SAVED MAN FROM LOSING BOTH KIDNEYS

A 69-year-old resident of Voronezh, Alexander Nikolaevich, found out about serious health problems by accident. During a routine examination at the place of residence, he was diagnosed with a tumor in the left kidney and hydronephrosis of the right kidney – a pathological expansion of the cup-pelvis system caused by the accumulation of urine and a violation of its outflow. The man did not even suspect the presence of pathology, because nothing bothered him.

Nevertheless, the condition of the right kidney required urgent intervention – urine excretion was impaired in it, which created a risk of loss of organ function. Therefore, all the efforts of doctors were focused on stabilizing this condition, and after the successful completion of treatment, they moved on to a more detailed examination of the left kidney. At this stage, it turned out that the situation was much more complicated than expected: the tumor was voluminous and technically inaccessible. In this case, it was already about either a high-tech reconstructive operation, or the removal of the organ. In this regard, the patient was sent to the  N. Lopatkin Scientific Research Institute of Urology and Interventional Radiology (SRIUIR) – the branch of the FSBI “National Medical Research Radiological Centre” of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation where the highest experience in conducting such interventions has been accumulated.

“After the examination, it turned out that the problem was much more serious than one might assume. The right kidney was very weak and significantly smaller than its anatomical size. If you remove the left – a fully functioning kidney, the man will have to live on hemodialysis, “explains the operating surgeon, oncologist of the Oncourological Department Oleg Osipov.

The tumor was located inside the kidney and occupied almost its entire volume. An additional threat was posed by large cysts up to 9 centimeters in diameter, covering the organ from all sides. Any careless movement or the slightest deviation from the plan – and the kidney could be irretrievably lost. Surgeons were faced with the task of extreme accuracy: to act literally on the verge of the possible, taking into account the proximity of blood vessels and the preservation of viable tissue.

The operation lasted about two hours. Surgeons managed to completely remove the tumor, and with it the cysts surrounding the kidney, the volume of which in total reached 600 milliliters of fluid. Despite the risk, the operation passed without complications. The kidney was saved – and this was the main result. After a few days, the patient began to recover, and control examinations confirmed: the organ is functioning, the threat has been eliminated.