For Mr BC Gupta the last two years have been the toughest. “I couldn’t walk properly , sit or lie down. There was a change in my gait. My personal and professional life was getting affected. I consulted a number of doctors in my city Mathura and went through numerous tests, however no one could diagnose my condition,” shares Mr Gupta.
A business man by profession, every day lost would affect his livelihood. According to Mr Gupta’s wife, “There were days when he would complain of severe headache, back pain and nausea. His way of walking had changes and it was as if he had constant weakness. We started to think he was suffering from a slip disc or arthritis, but none of the reports suggested the same. Each day was like a punishment to him.”
Mr Gupta started taking medication from an orthopaedician and also resorted to alternative medicine, but none of the same helped to cure him. Post discussion with a neurologist and a CT scan, the doctors realised that the issue could be related to the spine. Unsure about the diagnosis at Mathura, they recommended Mr Gupta to consult Dr (Prof) VS Mehta, Director Neurosciences at Paras Hospitals, Gurgaon.
“ When I started to enquire about Dr Mehta, I came to know that he has been awarded by the President of India (Padamshree) for exceptional medical service and has also served as the HOD in AIIMS. He had numerous success stories in Mathura. Confident about the doctor, we decided to come to Paras Hospitals, Gurgaon,” shares Mr Gupta.
A functional MRI and neurological scans highlighted that Mr Gupta had an ‘Ependymoma’ – a tumor originating from the central nervous system. The same was detected in the spinal cord. This tumor also known as an intradural extramedullary spinal tumor as causing all the signs and symptoms.
According to Dr VS Mehta, “ This is a rare case and such tumors of the CNS in adults are found in the spinal cord. These tumors cause headache, nausea and vomiting and can even obstruct the flow of cerebrospinal fluid. Other symptoms can include (but are not limited to): loss of appetite, difficulty sleeping, temporary inability to distinguish colors, uncontrollable twitching, seeing vertical or horizontal lines when in bright light, and temporary memory loss. In Mr Gupta’s case the tumor was causing inflammation in the kidneys and enlargement of the prostrate. The situation could be treated through surgery however the same required precision as the size of the tumor was very small. In such cases the tumor is called a Low Grade Glioma.”
He further adds, “We decided to do the surgery through the special image guided tumor navigation technology. A specialised technology that provides a 3D view of the brain and better control over their surgical procedures and outcomes. The neuro-navigation technology comprises of advanced software modules that will enable surgeons to visualize the anatomy of the patient’s brain in 3D to get a comprehensive idea of the location of the tumor and the obstacles that can be encountered during surgery. This ensures that human surgical errors are minimised and the best results benefit the patient.”
Post procedure, Mr Gupta will have to go through few months of rehabilitation, but today he is free from pain. “ Who would have thought that just chronic back pain could be a tumor. Lack of good doctors in Mathura made me suffer for so many years. I am thankful to Dr Mehta’s exceptional insight for making me free from pain.”
