Odysseys of George

Well, NUH conducted its first international GIST symposium and I just had to be there to learn the updates on GIST(Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumours). It was an excellent symposium covering the entire aspect of GIST from the molecular levels upto what the future holds for GIST.

It was on the 13th September and thus, I boarded a flight down to Singapore on the 12th September. To my surprise, all the hotels there were fully booked and I managed to get an exclusive room up on the 27th floor! The hotel had a futuristic modern look and I felt like Bond, James Bond.

So, I decided to check out the hotel a little and this is what I have for your viewing pleasure.

My room.

the pool which I indulged myself in later at night!

The M Hotel

The jacuzzi beside the pool

That morning, the 13th we felt the earth move as the eartquake shook Indonesia and the fear of tsunami moved across Asia. The lifts were stopped for almost 20 minutes before they resumed normal activity.

As I took the flight back, I cannot help but to impress upon myself that the airport was filled with activity. It had the crowd, the flair and above all the cozy feeling. The orchids were alive and captivating.

And I sat by the window, seeing the plane take flight I saw the beautiful skies and its city.

I also noted the moon. It was the beginning of Ramadhan, the fasting month for the Muslims. it was the 13th of September. Selamat Berpuasa!

Jaws, the return

STAR 16th September

By Dr ALBERT LIM KOK HOOI

The poor maligned shark in food and medicine
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Hey check out this new recipe!

Well, sorry to cause some loss of appetite but this is actually a gallbladder filled with numerous stones and was filled with pus! In other words, Empyema of the Gallbladder!

Well, how did this happen? On of the larger stones impacted the cystic duct that connects the gallbladder to the main bile duct. This then forms a stagnant pool of bile within the gallbladder which can get infected and swollen. This is potentially dangerous as one can end up with life threatening complications.

Well, I guess after a long break – I should wake the audience up and probably cause an epidemic of mass vomiting!

Having worked in a paediatric surgical unit and frequently get referrals from paediatric oncologist, I still cannot understand why should God allow children to suffer from such misery? Yes, it was a genetic mutation but it just feels wrong. As perfect a creation we seem to be, that is also how imperfect we could be. That is what I call the contradictions of life! That is the rule of life!
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A sad story to follow the picture above! But till then keep the brain cells active and give the closest answer, if you can!

A lady was admitted for accidentally swallowing her two-premolar tooth denture. According to her , the wire piece had broken before and presently only supported by a wire on a single side. She was using this now loose denture for quite some time till 3 days ago while washing her mouth it dislodge and was swallowed accidentally.

An chest Xray showed it to be lying within the lower oesophagus but within the thoracic cavity.

Do you see it?
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A closer look shows a W-shape wire piece sitting horizontally.

Removing it surgically was also not going to be easy and would have high possible complications due to its position. Removing it endoscopically would be the best option but had failed 2 previous attempts.

Today, we decided to rescope her before taking her to the operating theatre and attempt to remove the denture. She had 2 attempts done before and was reported to be embedded to the wall of the oesophagus. We somehow, skillfully managed to remove the denture! Yahooo!

Moral of the story:

Please, when something is defunct or loose, don’t use it. And as typical Malaysian, don’t wait till something occurs, or assume that nothing would happen as nothing had happen so far, as it may be a high price to pay or may even cost your life!