Prenatal imaging detected a 2.3-inch tumor believed to be the "largest ever" that was protruding from the mouth and attached to the upper jaw of a girl. The tumor was successfully removed after her birth by surgeons in Israel, according to news reports published on December 18.
Rabin Medical Center in Israel announced recently that the tumor, described as the largest of its kind and location reported in medical literature, was removed at the girl’s birth after it had been discovered on an ultrasound at 33 weeks of gestation. At 6 cm, the tumor nearly mirrored the size of the newborn’s 8-cm head, according to the stories.
The tumor’s location suggested a condition called epulis, sometimes referred to as a pregnancy tumor. The common, benign lump originates from gum or periodontal ligament tissue but is usually only detected after a child is born.
After the girl was discharged from Rabin’s intensive care unit, follow-up examinations showed the surgical site was healing normally. The child will be monitored until the eruption of her primary teeth, which are expected to develop without problems, according to the stories.
When the child’s mother, Shiri Ben Ezer Dangoor, 31, arrived for a routine ultrasound at 33 weeks, the tumor was detected. At that time, medical professionals determined the best way to proceed was to continue monitoring the fetus to ensure her airway was not obstructed.
On November 13, the girl was delivered via cesarean section. From there, a team, including oral maxillofacial surgeons and pediatric anesthesia, oversaw the tumor removal, which had some challenges.
Since infants have very low blood volume, arterial bleeding from this type of mass can quickly become life-threatening. Imaging done during the pregnancy showed large blood vessels running along the tumor, which meant the procedure required layered ligation of the stalk of the tumor and careful blood control, according to the story.
