Bengaluru, August 01st, 2024: Narayana Health City announced a significant milestone achieved by its ortho-oncology team led by Dr. Suman Byregowda, Consultant Musculoskeletal Oncology Surgeon. Over the past seven years, from 2017 to 2024, the team has successfully conducted more than 1000 critical limb-saving/salvage surgeries, offering hope and a new lease on life to patients from across India and beyond, including Bangladesh, African countries, and the Middle East.
This achievement comes during Sarcoma Awareness Month, emphasizing the hospital’s commitment to advancing cancer treatment and patient care. This feat also underlines hope for many who face the devastating prospect of amputation due to bone cancers.
A poignant example of the team’s life-changing work is the case of Ms. Prateeksha, a 17-year-old from Coorg who was Diagnosed with osteosarcoma (a high-grade bone cancer) of the thigh bone in 2021 when Ms. Prateeksha journey seemed daunting. She underwent chemotherapy and subsequently a limb-saving surgery where the cancerous bone was treated with high-dose radiotherapy and then fixed back in her body. Remarkably, she could resume her everyday life soon after the surgery. Now, over three years later, Ms. Prateeksha is cancer-free, excelling in her studies and pursuing her passion for dance, and has been awarded the Best Motivated Student of the Year by her school.
“Seeing my daughter back to her normal life and excelling in her activities is nothing short of a miracle,” says Ms. Prateeksha’s mother. “We are immensely grateful to Dr. Byregowda and the entire team at Narayana Health City for the expertise and care offered.”
Dr. Suman Byregowda reflects on the journey, “A few decades ago, bone cancers were akin to death sentences, and those who did survive had to live with amputated limbs affecting the quality of life adversely. Today, with advanced surgical techniques, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy, we can save limbs in more than 90% of cases and achieve complete cures in 60-80% of patients.
Bone cancers, once deemed incurable, now have a promising outlook. Narayana Health City remains at the forefront of cancer treatment, proving that oncology expertise, surgical excellence, and innovative medical interventions can significantly alter patients’ prognoses with bone and soft tissue cancers.