Cancer patient regains consciousness and communicates by writing

Waking up after many days of being unconscious, Ms. Nguyen Thi Lien did not see her husband beside her. She waved her hand to signal that she wanted to say something. The nurse quickly gave her a pen and a writing board. With her dry, skinny hand holding the pen, she wrote on the board, "Where is your husband?". The nurse replied that her husband had gone to the Central Maternity Hospital to visit baby Binh An, Ms. Lien nodded in agreement.

Every time Ms. Lien wakes up, her family and the doctor show her the latest update clip of her son Do Binh An, who is being treated at the Central Maternity Hospital. In the clip, sometimes the boy wiggles, sometimes he cries. Every time she sees his eyes light up, sometimes she sheds tears.

"Binh An is the best spiritual medicine that helps Lien recover every day," said Mr. Nguyen Ba Tinh, Head of Social Work Department, K Hospital.

Dr. Nguyen Tien Duc, Head of the Emergency Resuscitation Department, K Hospital, said that one day after the cesarean section, Ms. Lien fell into severe respiratory failure, and doctors had to intubate the patient and put her on a ventilator, providing intensive care.

Four days after the surgery, the patient's condition worsened. K Hospital consulted with all departments to come up with the best treatment plan. On May 29, the patient's symptoms improved. The next day, the patient was alert and responsive.

"Today, the patient is communicating completely normally, breathing on her own with the help of a machine. The mother writes on the board to communicate because she cannot speak," Dr. Duc said on the morning of May 31.

Mr. Tinh said that, as planned, next week, K Hospital and the Central Maternity Hospital will arrange for Ms. Lien to visit her child. Many options are being considered, but the most optimistic is still waiting for Ms. Lien's recovery, when the patient can breathe on her own and can sit in a wheelchair, she can move to the ambulance.

"The doctor is always there when she meets her child, to prevent emotions from affecting Lien's health," said Mr. Tinh.

Baby Binh An is stable, has had the endotracheal tube removed, is breathing through his nose, and is getting 20 ml of milk per meal.

Sharing about the "diary" of resuscitation for Ms. Lien, Dr. Dong Chi Kien was most impressed with the mother Lien not only for her determination and will to keep her child but also for her eyes. "When I asked 'Have you made a decision yet', without thinking or hesitating, she said 'I want to keep the child at all costs'," Dr. Kien said.

From there, the doctors at K Hospital decided to both treat the mother’s cancer and prolong the pregnancy. At 18 weeks of pregnancy, the doctors at K Hospital held an inter-hospital consultation with experts from the Central Obstetrics Hospital and Hospital 103, agreeing to make efforts to monitor and care for the health of both mother and child, trying to keep the baby in the mother’s womb as long as possible.

At 31 weeks of pregnancy, when the mother's endurance was exhausted, the doctors decided to perform a cesarean section. On the afternoon of May 22, baby boy Do Binh An was born at 31 weeks of pregnancy by cesarean section with the support of nearly 20 leading doctors. The surgery was rare because the mother had to sit down because her breast cancer had metastasized to her lungs, and if she lay down, she would not be able to breathe.

Binh An was taken to the Neonatal Center of the Central Maternity Hospital for special care. The mother continues to receive treatment at the K Hospital. Mother and son live in the same city, more than 10km apart, but have never met. Hopefully, next week, Lien's health will improve even more, and the meeting will definitely take place.