12.05.2026 19:32
In Sivas, 77-year-old Saniye Elmalı won her life struggle, which she had been enduring with a giant mass weighing exactly 7 kilograms 750 grams, through a miraculous operation performed at the university hospital. The multidisciplinary surgery, which involved three different surgical branches declaring a 'surgical mobilization,' is candidate to enter medical literature due to both the size of the mass and the successful operation process. Elmalı, who got rid of the mass she had been carrying as a burden on her chest wall for years, took a deep breath after the operation.
A surgery worthy of medical literature was performed at Sivas Cumhuriyet University. A massive mass removed from the chest wall of a 77-year-old patient draws attention both for its weight and the complexity of the operation.
SURGERY THAT ASTONISHED THE MEDICAL WORLD
Saniye Elmalı, a 77-year-old living in Sivas, applied to SCU Faculty of Medicine Hospital to get rid of a chest mass that had turned her life into a nightmare and severely reduced her quality of life. After examinations, a mass weighing exactly 7 kilograms 750 grams was successfully removed from Elmalı's chest.
THREE SEPARATE SPECIALTIES
A virtual 'surgical mobilization' was declared at the hospital to remove such a large and complex mass. The operation was carried out with a multidisciplinary approach by the following teams. Thoracic surgery, general surgery, and plastic, reconstructive, and aesthetic surgery specialists came together for this operation.
Dr. Lecturer Mahmut Özbey emphasized that such chest wall tumors are very rare and that this case was successfully concluded thanks to teamwork.
GIANT MASS DEVELOPED AFTER TRAUMA
Prof. Dr. Sinan Soylu from the Department of General Surgery shared an important detail about the cause of the mass. The mass is thought to have developed due to a rib trauma the patient experienced in the past. Growing over the years to nearly 8 kilograms, the mass had completely covered the chest wall.
'I HAD NO STRENGTH LEFT TO ENDURE'
Having regained her health, Saniye Elmalı felt great relief after the surgery. Stating that she had to live with this burden for many years, Elmalı expressed her feelings, saying, 'I had no strength left to endure. My professors saved me from this trouble, I am grateful to them all.'