A guy from New Jersey seen a malignant growth on the back of his neck develop to the point where it was bigger than his own head over the course of around six months.
Milton Wingert, who is 81 years old, is now recuperating following surgery to remove the tumour. However, in the weeks preceding up to the procedure that took place a week ago, it had expanded to the point that the physicians were concerned that it might cause the patient to drown under its own weight.
Even though he tried to hide the tumor with a handkerchief and leave his house in Jersey City, the retired electrician claims that he was unable to do so.
“I was so self-conscious,” the Journal Square resident tells The Post of the harrowing experience she went through. “[People] would make fun of me all the time.”
The malignant growth first shown itself on his neck around seven months ago and has since been rapidly expanding. He saw a number of medical professionals, but as the size of the tumor increased, they were less and less inclined to remove it. A good many of surgeons were concerned that the operation would have an effect on either his carotid artery or his clavicle.
“I kept going to different hospitals and seeing different doctors, and it just kept growing and growing and getting bigger and bigger,” he adds. “It was just a vicious cycle.” “I was starting to feel anxious, and I kept asking myself when I was going to have that operation.”
At the beginning of this month, Wingert had a consultation with Dr. Nazir Khan, a head and neck surgeon at Mount Sinai Hospital, in order to arrange the treatment. At that point, the tumor had already reached a size of around 23 cm, which is equivalent to approximately 9 inches and is the size of a soccer ball.
Khan states that this particular tumor was the biggest one he had ever had to operate on. “It had caused him significant issues with his quality of life, so I felt sorry that it had gotten to this point,” she said. “It had caused him significant difficulties.”
“it would have essentially compressed his airway” and caused Wingert to choke if the tumor had continued to grow as Khan believes it likely would have.
During the procedure that took place on November 5, thoracic and vascular surgeons were on standby in case the tumor proved to be more difficult to remove than expected. “We were prepared for the worst, but hoped for the best,” Khan adds. “We were prepared for the worst.”
To our good fortune, everything went well throughout the procedure. Even though Wingert will almost certainly still need to go through extra treatment, such as radiation or chemotherapy, he is making progress and should be able to leave the hospital in the near future – he is hoping that he will be able to do so before his birthday at the end of this month.
This year, he is not going to take his 82nd birthday for granted and instead plans to enjoy it. “I’m going to celebrate my birthday,” he adds. “A miracle has occurred.”