UKHRUL/IMPHAL: A 10-year-old girl has successfully undergone a complex Whipple surgery for a pancreatic tumour at Karkinos Healthcare, Porompat, Imphal, in a rare and challenging paediatric surgical procedure.
The girl had been experiencing abdominal pain and vomiting for around three weeks before she was referred for surgery. A CT scan revealed a 6.2 × 6.1 cm mass in the head of the pancreas.
The case was reviewed by the Karkinos All India Tumour Board, following which the surgical team proceeded with exploration of the abdomen, frozen-section examination and the Whipple procedure, medically known as pancreaticoduodenectomy, on September 22.
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The surgery lasted approximately five hours and 15 minutes and was particularly challenging because of the patient’s young age and the complexity of performing major pancreatic surgery on a small child. The bile duct measured only about 3 mm, while the main pancreatic duct was approximately 1.5 mm, making the reconstruction particularly delicate.
Paediatric pancreatic tumours are extremely rare, with the press note estimating their incidence at around 0.018 cases per 100,000 people. Major pancreatic resections in children are also typically limited to only a handful of cases annually even at major tertiary paediatric centres.
The surgery was successfully completed and the child is recovering under close medical supervision. She received the surgical treatment free of cost under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY).
Dr Sanam Opendro Singh, HOD Surgical Oncology and Medical Superintendent at Karkinos Healthcare, said paediatric Whipple surgery requires meticulous surgical planning, specialised perioperative care and coordinated multidisciplinary management.
The successful procedure marks a significant development in the availability of advanced paediatric surgical oncology and multidisciplinary cancer care in Manipur.
