Second Pacemaker Implanted in Lower Abdomen of a Cancer Survivor in Delhi

Sixty-eight-year-old Naseema Begum underwent an unusual surgery in Fortis Escorts Heart Institute (FEHI), Delhi, India. The patient is a cancer survivor and was installed a pacemaker in the lower abdominal cavity.

Two years ago she had her first pacemaker implanted in the right heart cavity. She was suffering from cancer in the left breast during the implant and the cancer spread to the right breast and caused infection, which trickled to the pacemaker.

Dr. Aparna Jaswal, Senior consultant, Department of Cardiac Pacing and Electrophysiology, FEHI and her team implanted the new pacemaker through the leg vein in the lower abdomen. Begum had a history of double mastectomy and so re-implanting the device was a challenge to the doctors as there was no area in the chest or upper abdomen.

Dr. Jaswal said, "For a two-time cancer survivor, the patient has shown tremendous courage in surviving a series of illness. In this case, the patient had undergone cancer treatment and that compressed the area where implanting the device was more viable. So we had to take the retro peritoneal way."

The team had taken extra efforts to import special leads to complete the surgery successfully.

Source: Medindia