A 20-year-old woman who sought treatment at a gynecological clinic for hip pain and abdominal bloating was diagnosed with an ovarian tumor.
The woman told the clinic staff that since her final year in junior high school, her hips have ached after she walked for more than 30 minutes, the clinic said.
She told doctors that the problem persisted through senior high school, when she began to put on weight in her stomach, it said.
By the time she was in college, her stomach looked as if she was seven to eight months pregnant, but she blamed the weight gain on her habit of studying after eating.
She told doctors that she started having soreness in her lower abdomen six months ago, which prompted her to seek treatment, it said.
An ultrasound scan showed that there was a tumor in her left ovary, the clinic added.
The clinic referred the woman to Chungshan Medical University Hospital, where after further examination, doctors determined the tumor was 20cm in diameter, taking up nearly all the space in her abdominal cavity, pushing the stomach and bladder to one side.
Using the Da Vinci robotic surgical system, doctor Wu Pei-ju (吳珮如) drained the tumor filled with 2,000cc of liquid before removing it, the hospital said.
The woman’s weight dropped by 2.5kg after the tumor was removed and she continued to lose weight thanks to an active lifestyle and regular exercise, the hospital said.
The woman said she is happy to be wearing smaller-sized clothing and no longer being subject to stares from strangers, it said.
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