72-yr-old man undergoes penis reconstruction surgery in Jaipur hospital

Jaipur: Doctors here removed an elderly patient's cancerous penis and replaced it with one constructed from skin, blood vessels and nerves of his hand.

Performed at the Bhagwan Mahaveer Cancer Hospital and Research Center (BMCHRC) here, the surgery took around eight hours and was done by a 11-member medical team, including five doctors.

The doctors claimed that this the first such surgery in Rajasthan using a hand's skin, blood vessels and nerves.

The 72-year-old patient from Rajasthan's Bundi initially had refused to get treatment after learning that his penis would be removed during the procedure, a surgical oncologist at the hospital, Dr. Prashant Sharma said.

However, later the patient agreed and the surgery was done, he said.

"During the surgery, the team first removed the cancerous penis. Then plastic and reconstructive surgeons performed the reconstruction procedure," Sharma said.

It was a complicated process to remove the cancerous penis and reconstruct the entire organ in a single operation, plastic surgeon Dr. Umesh Bansal said.

Having both these procedures done together has had no negative effect on the patient's mental condition, he said.

"The penis was constructed by taking skin, blood vessels and nerves from the patient's left hand. After that, the newly made penis was transplanted, and blood flow started in it. Microsurgical techniques were used in this surgery," Bansal said.

"The purpose of penis reconstruction was to create the correct shape, length and urethra as well as restore sensation in the penis," he said.

There was no change in the "working capacity or size of the hand from which the penis was constructed", the surgeon said.

"In this case, the patient can lead a completely normal life with the reconstructed penis," Bansal added.

Sharma said approximately four per cent of male cancer patients have cancer in their genital, and about 50 per cent of these patients have to get their penis removed as part of treatment.

Plastic surgeon Dr. Saurabh Rawat said the state's first gender reconstruction surgery was done in 2017 at the BMCHRC. "So far, 10 penis reconstructions have been done in the hospital," he said.

Rawat said the new penis was made exactly like the natural one. "Reconstruction allows the person to walk normally and do other daily activities easily within two weeks," he added.