A Scottish teenager with epilepsy has undergone ground-breaking surgery to remove part of his brain and is now seizure-free for the first time in 13 years, according to his mother.
Angus Bain, 17, suffered seizures at least once a week for most of his life, but doctors are optimistic he will be free of the debilitating condition after becoming one of the first patients in the UK to undergo the new laser surgery, SWNS. reported.
This pioneering surgery removes the brain tissue that causes seizures. Ten weeks later, Angus has not had a single incident.
“Our lives have been consumed by Angus’s epilepsy since he was 5 years old,” his mother, Nicki Bain from Gateside, Fife, told the outlet.
“He’s been on a lot of very strong medications, he had wires in his head, brain stimulation, a lot of tests and scans.”
Angus Bain, 17, has been seizure-free for 10 weeks after undergoing rare laser surgery in October. Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity/SWNS Bain was diagnosed with epilepsy when he was 4 years old. The Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity/SWNS Bain is only the second young person in Scotland to undergo the surgery. Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity / SWNS
“I can’t even put into words what it means to him and our entire family that he is seizure-free for Christmas this year,” she said.
Angus received the procedure at Edinburgh Children’s Hospital in October. The innovative laser technology, known as MRI-guided laser interstitial thermal therapy, is minimally invasive and the surgery lasts just under two hours with a relatively short recovery time, according to SWNS.
“Laser surgery is a fantastic advance for specific patients and will give some with epilepsy a real chance to live a normal life,” Dr Jothy Kandasamy, consultant neurosurgeon at the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People, told the outlet.
“The surgery has been life-changing not only for Angus, but for the whole family,” he added.
The teenager is only the second young person in Scotland to undergo the surgery.
Roslyn Neely, chief executive of Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity, said she was “encouraged by the transformative impact laser surgery has had for Angus”.
Nicki Bain said her son’s “future looks very bright and we are incredibly proud and excited for him.”
The teenager said he hopes to one day get his driver’s license, play rugby or ski, things that were too risky for him before surgery.
“I would like to be able to go to parties with my friends. “I see pictures of all my friends together and I’m jealous that I can’t go but they can,” she wistfully told BBC Scotland News.
While checking those things off his list may take some time as he continues to recover, Angus is thrilled with the outcome so far.
“I have never gone so long without having seizures, it is an incredible relief. I’m so happy.”
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Source: vtt.edu.vn