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Chandigarh PGI surgeons removed 7-cm brain tumour from two-year-old

Skull base meningiomas are some of the most challenging tumours to operate on, even in adults. At two years, it appeared to be a daunting task with a high risk to life.

2 min readChandigarhJan 15, 2026 09:49 PM IST

Indian Express Photo brain tumour removal

A team of neurosurgeons (led by Prof. Dhandapani) and ENT surgeons (led by Prof. Anurag) of PGIMER, Chandigarh, had successfully completed the surgery.

For the first time ever, a team of neurosurgeons (led by Prof. Dhandapani) and ENT surgeons (led by Prof. Anurag) of PGIMER, Chandigarh, has successfully removed a 7-cm giant skull base brain tumour coming down through the nose of a two-year-old child using endoscopy.

According to the doctors, the child from Sonipat, Haryana, presented with worsening complaints of protrusion of the left eyeball, fixity of eye movements, snoring, a mass seen via the left nostril, and excessive watering of the eye. The CT/MRI showed a 7-cm anterior skull base tumour involving the nose, sinuses, brain, and orbit. The biopsy turned out to be a meningioma. It is extremely rare in children, and the only other similar case reported previously in 2020 was in a 12-year-old girl from Spain who also needed open surgery.

Skull base meningiomas are some of the most challenging tumours to operate on, even in adults. At two years, it appeared to be a daunting task with a high risk to life due to hypothermia, blood loss, fluid disturbances, etc. Hence, a team was assembled to operate this child. The plan was to remove as much of the tumour as safely possible using an endoscope via the nose, and if needed, to go for open neurosurgery.

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As the tumour was extending down through the nose and laterally involving the maxillary sinus and orbit, the child needed expanded endonasal endoscopy with the creation of additional space by nibbling the anterior cheekbone. Navigation, 45-degree angled endoscope, coblator, and long curved instruments were used innovatively to reach the upper part of the tumour adjacent to the brain.

The tumour was very vascular, involving multiple bones and crevices. As the tumour was meticulously removed entirely with just endoscopy via the nose, the open neurosurgery was not required. The huge defect in the skull base created by the tumour was repaired in multiple layers.

The preparation and procedure lasted nine hours. The patient has improved after surgery, and an MRI has confirmed total excision.

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