NUH celebrates 50th use of iMRI scanner, the ‘gold standard’ in neurosurgery care
The service at Queens Medical Centre (QMC) which gives the ability to perform Intraoperative Magnetic Resonance Imaging (iMRI) scans on neurosurgery patients during their surgery – usually tumour removal – has successfully scanned its 50th patient – a 14 month old little girl called Nancy Dakin.
There are only a handful of these facilities available in the UK, but this is the first intraoperative service that can scan adults and children during surgery. It is considered the gold standard of care for neurosurgery patients.
After displaying worrying symptoms for a few weeks, Mum, Gemma Dakin and Dad, Sam Skerrit took Nancy to the doctors and found out she had Ependymoma, a large tumour on the left side of her brain.
Six days after being referred to the QMC, Nancy had an operation using the iMRI scanner. This means surgeons were able to perform surgery and immediately scan Nancy to ensure the entire tumour was removed or continue the surgery if they found there was more to remove.
Gemma said: “It was terrifying, we were on edge the whole time, just pacing up and down in the hospital. After eight hours, she came out and they told us to come down to recovery. We couldn’t believe it. She was awake straight away and playing with a fidget toy and smiling at the doctors!”
When asked about the iMRI scanner, Gemma said: “It’s amazing! You wouldn’t think something like that would exist until you’re in the situation and then it’s there. We were blown away by the care. It’s been brilliant.”
Doctors were aiming to remove 50 per cent of the tumour, but following the operation, it was confirmed that 100 per cent of Nancy’s tumour has been successfully removed.
Gemma said: “It’s been a real roller-coaster of emotions. The staff here have been brilliant. If we were millionaires, we’d end up having nothing because we’d give it all to them.”
Donald Macarthur, Paediatric Neurosurgeon at the Nottingham Children’s Hospital said: “Many people worked hard and raised a lot of money to help fund our Children’s Hospital Intraoperative MRI scanner and in the two years that we’ve been using it we have seen huge benefits.
“It’s helping us achieve the best possible results in brain tumour operations for our little patients like Nancy and we are able to show parents immediately afterwards how successful the surgery has been. Many of our young patients are now able to have their MRI scans without needing to have general anaesthetics which is great for them and is helping with waiting lists too.”
The project was a joint funding partnership between NUH, Nottingham Hospitals Charity, the University of Nottingham and Children with Cancer charity. Nigel Gregory, Deputy Chief Executive at Nottingham Hospitals Charity, said: “What a wonderful milestone to know that the intra-operative MRI scanner, funded, in partnership with the University of Nottingham, has successfully scanned our 50th patient. It is such an important piece of machinery that is clearly making a real, tangible difference to patients and their families at Nottingham Children’s Hospital. A huge thank you to our supporters from across Nottingham, who donated towards this fantastic project.”
Nancy and her parents are all back at home and she’s recovering well and will return in the New Year for Chemotherapy.
Gemma said: “Only four days after having major brain surgery, Nancy is back at home like nothing has changed, back to terrorizing her brother! She’s a tough one!”