Taking a medical history, Mr. L. said that more than 4 months ago, he started to have symptoms of numbness and weakness in both legs. His family took him to many hospitals, had him examined by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the cervical and lumbar spine, and only discovered cervical spondylosis and pleural tuberculosis.
He was prescribed treatment for pleural tuberculosis first. After two months of treatment, Mr. L was almost completely paralyzed in both legs and his body gradually became weaker.
On March 20, specialist 2 Dang Bao Ngoc (Department of Neurosurgery, Center for Neuroscience, Tam Anh General Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City) said that Mr. L. showed signs of damage to the thoracic spinal cord, not in the neck and waist as previously diagnosed. Typical symptoms are paralysis of both legs and loss of skin sensation from the navel down.
The patient was ordered to have a 3 Tesla MRI scan of the thoracic spine with contrast injection. The results showed a spinal cord tumor located in the spinal canal at the D8 thoracic vertebra, measuring 3x4 cm, occupying the entire spinal canal, pushing the spinal cord to one side. According to Dr. Ngoc, the patient had an MRI scan of the cervical and lumbar spine in the area just a few centimeters above and below the tumor, the tumor was hidden so the previous doctors could not find the disease.
Mr. L's spinal cord tumor is in a very dangerous location, and can affect many important functions such as causing complete paralysis of both legs, muscle atrophy of both legs, numbness and loss of sensation in the skin of the lower body and legs, and urinary and bowel obstruction.
The patient was scheduled for immediate surgery to relieve paralysis of the lower limbs. The surgery lasted more than an hour, using modern 3D fluorescence microsurgery glasses combined with new generation artificial intelligence integrated neural navigation. These techniques help doctors clearly see the tumor and surrounding structures in the thoracic spine, choosing a safe approach to remove the tumor.
The doctor made a 6cm long incision in the thoracic vertebrae D7, D8, D9, cut the D8 vertebrae on both sides and part of the D7, D9 vertebrae, and decompressed the spinal cord. He cut the dura mater across D8, revealing a soft, slightly tough white tumor measuring 3x4cm, compressing the spinal cord. The surgical team proceeded to dissect and remove the entire tumor. Doctor Ngoc determined that this was a benign nerve sheath tumor, but the sample was then sent for biopsy to determine the nature of the tumor.
The patient thanked the doctor before being discharged from the hospital.
After surgery, the patient recovered quickly. Four days after surgery, the muscle strength of the right leg recovered to 4/5, and the left leg recovered to 2/5. Mr. L. can stand, defecate, and urinate normally, and is expected to be discharged after one week of treatment. The patient continues to practice rehabilitation exercises and return for follow-up visits as directed. The prognosis for recovery is good in the near future.
Dr. Ngoc added that spinal cord tumors, especially thoracic spinal cord tumors, often develop with vague initial symptoms that are easily overlooked in the early stages. The disease can also be confused with other causes such as spinal degeneration and weakness.
"Patients with suspicious signs such as numbness, loss of sensation in the lower body should go to a hospital with a neurology or neurosurgery department for examination. Early examination and detection helps patients receive timely treatment, increasing the success rate for patients," Dr. Ngoc shared.
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