On April 8, the Department of Neurosurgery, Children's Hospital 1, announced that it had received and successfully treated patient T.G.K (7 months old, Dong Thap) diagnosed with ventricular tumor III.
According to medical history, when the child was 3 months old, the family noticed that the child's head gradually grew after birth, frequently vomited after breastfeeding, and his eyes looked down, so they took him to the doctor. Doctors recorded that the child had increased intracranial pressure such as large head circumference, swollen fontanelle, and limited viewing up. Ultrasound through the fontanelle recorded a tumor in the third ventricle region compressing, causing severe ventricular dilation.
The results of the brain resonance imaging showed that the tumor in the III ventricle caused compression leading to hydrocephalus and obstruction. This is a deep location, surrounded by many important nerve structures, so surgical intervention is very complex. The pathology results determined that this is a type 2 atypical vascular plexus tumor, a rare tumor of the central nervous system.
Due to concerns about the high risk of surgery on a very young patient, the family and doctors agreed to place intraperitoneal ventricular drainage to temporarily reduce intracranial pressure on November 25, 2025 and wait for an appropriate time to perform tumor removal surgery.
However, after 3 months, MRI showed that the tumor grew rapidly, and its size increased more than 3 times. Faced with this situation, doctors advised early surgery to save the child in time.
On March 25, 2026, the surgery was performed. Thanks to careful preparation and close coordination between specialties, the surgery took place safely and smoothly. After 6 hours, the team successfully removed the tumor.
Dr. Tran Minh Huy - Department of Neurosurgery, Children's Hospital 1 - said that this is a difficult surgery because the tumor is located deep in the center of the brain, surrounded by many important nerve and blood vessel structures. The tumor is about 6 cm in size, proliferating blood vessels, developing in the heart of the III ventricle, causing many challenges for surgeons. In addition, the long surgery time and high risk of blood loss in 7-month-old children require high professional qualifications and close inter-specialized coordination.
After surgery and resuscitation and care, the patient recovered well and was discharged from the hospital after 10 days of treatment.
