A Small Patient, a Giant Battle
In a quiet ward at Kalinga Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS), Bhubaneswar, a six-year-old girl sat up on her hospital bed — smiling for the first time in weeks.
Just days earlier, her parents had feared the worst: a rare liver tumour had been discovered, threatening her life.
But after a complex, high-risk surgery performed by a multidisciplinary team of doctors, she was now recovering — a living testament to how cutting-edge medicine and compassion can come together to create miracles.
This is not just the story of a surgery — it’s a story of teamwork, technology, and the human will to heal.
The Diagnosis: When the Unknown Strikes
It began with something deceptively simple — abdominal pain, fatigue, and loss of appetite.
Her parents, from a small town in Odisha’s Ganjam district, thought it might be a stomach infection. But when her belly started to swell, they knew something was wrong.
At a local clinic, preliminary scans revealed an alarming image — a large mass in the liver.
They were referred immediately to KIMS, Bhubaneswar, known for its advanced paediatric and hepatobiliary care.
After detailed imaging and blood tests, the doctors confirmed what every parent dreads:
“Your child has a rare liver tumour — one that requires immediate intervention.”
The tumour was later identified as a Hepatoblastoma, a rare form of childhood liver cancer that occurs in only about 1 in 1 million children.
The Challenge: A Race Against Time
Hepatoblastoma is known for its complexity — it grows fast, intertwines with vital blood vessels, and often leaves surgeons with limited options.
In this case, the tumour occupied almost 70% of the liver, dangerously close to the inferior vena cava (IVC) — the major vein that carries blood from the lower body to the heart.
Dr. Pradeep Panigrahi, Head of Hepatobiliary Surgery at KIMS, recalls,
“It was like operating on a volcano — one wrong move could lead to fatal bleeding. But if we didn’t act fast, the tumour could spread.”
A multidisciplinary team was quickly assembled — paediatric oncologists, hepatobiliary surgeons, anaesthesiologists, radiologists, and critical care experts.
Their goal: remove the tumour, save as much healthy liver as possible, and stabilize the child’s fragile system.
The Preparation: Planning Every Second
Before the surgery, the child underwent neoadjuvant chemotherapy to shrink the tumour and make it operable.
For weeks, her small body endured the side effects — nausea, weakness, hair loss — but her spirit stayed unbroken.
Meanwhile, the team at KIMS spent countless hours in pre-operative meetings.
3D CT scans were reconstructed into digital liver models to map every artery and vein.
Dr. Sujata Mohanty, the lead radiologist, explains,
“In liver surgery, anatomy is everything. Every millimeter counts. The virtual mapping helped us anticipate blood flow and surgical challenges before even making an incision.”
The surgical plan involved anatomical right hepatectomy — removing the diseased portion of the liver while ensuring that the remaining segment could regenerate.
The Surgery: Precision Meets Courage
On the morning of the surgery, the paediatric ICU was on high alert.
Two anaesthesiologists monitored the child’s vitals. A team of nurses prepped specialized instruments.
Inside the operation theatre, silence gave way to concentration.
Over eight hours, the doctors worked in harmony — isolating blood vessels, carefully resecting the tumour, and reconstructing the remaining liver tissue.
At one point, the child’s blood pressure dropped dangerously low. The anaesthesia team responded instantly, stabilizing her.
The surgical team continued, guided by ultrasound imaging and clinical intuition.
Finally, after hours of tension, the tumour — weighing nearly 600 grams — was removed.
The room exhaled.
The monitors beeped steady.
The child had made it.
The Recovery: A New Beginning
Post-surgery, the child was moved to the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), where she remained under constant monitoring for the next 72 hours.
Nutritionists designed a special recovery diet, physiotherapists helped her regain strength, and counsellors supported the parents through emotional fatigue.
Within ten days, she was walking — a miracle in itself.
Dr. Panigrahi shares,
“Children are remarkably resilient. Their livers regenerate faster, their bodies heal quickly, and their spirits are unbreakable.”
Follow-up scans showed complete removal of the tumour, and her liver function returned to normal within weeks.
The KIMS team now monitors her progress regularly — ensuring that the recovery continues without recurrence.
The Human Side: Hope Inside a Hospital Room
Beyond the clinical brilliance lies a story of empathy and endurance.
For her parents, daily hospital visits, long nights, and mounting costs took an emotional toll.
But the medical staff at KIMS went beyond duty — helping arrange support through the KIIT-KISS Health Fund, ensuring the family didn’t have to choose between money and survival.
One nurse, who stayed by the child’s side every night, recalls,
“She called me ‘Didi’ and asked if she could go home to play. That’s when I knew she was going to be okay.”
These moments — small but powerful — define the heart of medicine.
Because sometimes healing begins not with medicine, but with kindness.
Behind the Breakthrough: The KIMS Way
Kalinga Institute of Medical Sciences, part of the KIIT Deemed University, has quietly become a hub for advanced paediatric surgeries in eastern India.
Its facilities include:
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A dedicated Paediatric Hepatobiliary Unit
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24×7 neonatal and paediatric ICUs
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3D imaging and robotic surgical systems
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A comprehensive oncology department with integrated care
This case adds to a growing list of medical milestones at KIMS, reinforcing its mission to bring world-class healthcare within reach.
Dr. Achyuta Samanta, Founder of KIIT & KISS, praised the team, stating:
“This success shows what can be achieved when compassion meets competence. We’re proud of our doctors who represent Odisha globally through their excellence.”
The Science of Liver Regeneration: Nature’s Own Healer
The liver is the only human organ capable of true regeneration — even if up to 70% is removed, it can regrow within months.
This unique property is what gives doctors the confidence to perform such daring surgeries, especially in children.
At KIMS, post-surgical care included monitoring for signs of liver failure, bile leakage, or infection.
The child’s progress was remarkable — by the second week, her liver enzymes had normalized.
Within a month, she was discharged — her laughter returning, her appetite restored, and her life reclaimed.
The Bigger Picture: Advancing Paediatric Surgery in India
While metropolitan hospitals in Delhi, Mumbai, or Chennai often make headlines, regional institutions like KIMS are quietly closing the healthcare gap.
This successful surgery proves that Odisha’s medical ecosystem is now capable of handling some of the most challenging cases in the world.
It also highlights the growing importance of multidisciplinary collaboration — where specialists from different fields unite to treat not just an organ, but a child as a whole person.
Dr. Panigrahi says it best:
“Medicine today isn’t about solo heroes. It’s about teamwork — radiologists, oncologists, surgeons, anaesthesiologists, nurses, all working as one heartbeat.”
A Message of Hope
For the little girl and her family, life has returned to normal — school, friends, and the laughter that once filled their home.
For the doctors, it’s a victory that will inspire future medical efforts.
But for Odisha, it’s a symbol — a reminder that miracles can happen right here, in Bhubaneswar, when science, skill, and humanity meet.
Every beep of her recovery monitor was more than a sound — it was a heartbeat of hope echoing across the state.
Conclusion: Healing as a Collective Triumph
In a world often defined by statistics and survival rates, this story stands out because it’s deeply human.
It’s about a family’s faith, a hospital’s dedication, and a team of doctors who refused to let geography or odds decide a child’s fate.
As she walks out of the hospital hand-in-hand with her parents, her smile becomes a message —
that healthcare, at its best, is not just about curing the body, but restoring the spirit.
At KIMS, Bhubaneswar, they didn’t just perform a rare liver surgery.
They performed hope — and it worked.
