New Delhi, Mar 22: A 14-year-old girl suffering from a rare form of cancer that left her unable to swallow food, which significantly affected her daily life and nutrition, was given a new lease of life at a city hospital here.
Doctors successfully treated the teenager’s aggressive form of cancer, known as signet ring cell carcinoma, at the gastro-oesophageal (GE) junction, where the food pipe meets the stomach.
Due to the severe impact of her condition on her daily life, she was brought to Manipal Hospital in Dwarka for evaluation. Diagnostic tests, including a biopsy, confirmed the presence of the rare cancer, doctors said.
According to studies under the National Institutes of Health (NIH), stomach and oesophageal cancer account for a major cancer burden worldwide; however, their occurrence in paediatric patients remains extremely rare. In younger patients, such cancers often develop without clearly identifiable lifestyle or environmental risk factors.
The teenage girl underwent five cycles of pre-surgery chemotherapy as part of her treatment process, doctors stated.
Subsequently, the oncology team led by Dr Surender Kumar Dabas, Chairman – Manipal Comprehensive Cancer Centre and Onco Robotic Surgeries, Manipal Hospitals, performed a robotic surgery to remove the affected part of the stomach along with nearby lymph nodes.
The advanced procedure allowed the team to remove the tumour while preserving the surrounding vital parts.
“Cancers at the GE junction are extremely rare in pediatric patients, which makes their diagnosis more complex. If such conditions are not treated in time, they can progress rapidly and spread to nearby organs, making treatment more complicated,” Dr Dabas said.
In this case, Dr Dabas noted that the patient responded well to pre-surgery chemotherapy, allowing doctors to proceed with advanced surgical treatment.
Robotic surgery enables greater precision, better visualisation, and improved outcomes, especially in such delicate areas.
“The girl also showed remarkable courage throughout the treatment and has shown encouraging recovery, with improvement in her ability to eat and regain strength under medical supervision,” he said.
Dr Sayed Assif, head of department and Consultant – GI and Surgical Oncology, explained that Signet ring cell carcinoma is a particularly aggressive subtype of gastrointestinal cancer.
“Managing such tumours at the gastroesophageal junction is challenging primarily due to the complexity of the region and the need to balance effective tumour clearance with preservation of function. ‘Such cases highlight how advances in surgical precision are improving outcomes even in rare and high-risk cancers,” Dr Assif said.
