BABY Saylor Thomas was born with a tumour on her spine twice as heavy as her body weight.
She was delivered by a team of 25 surgeons, neonatologists, anaesthetists, theatre staff, nurses, and midwives.
North Lakes parents Rachel and Kieran Thomson’s “miracle baby” was born three months premature at Mater Mother’s Hospital Brisbane in August.
When Saylor’s fast-growing tumour was first identified in a 20-week scan, Mrs Thomson was told her daughter had a 25 to 40 percent chance of survival.
“When the social worker and surgeons first gathered to tell us, she had little chance of making it due to prematurity and the tumour, I cried hysterically,” Mrs Thomson said.
“But being able to hold Saylor in my arms and know she has come through the other side is something special.”
A complex six-hour operation was performed moments after Saylor’s birth to remove the two-kilogram sacrococcygeal teratoma – a tumour occurring in one out of 40,000 live births.
Mater Maternal Fetal Medicine Unit Professor Sailesh Kumar said Saylor’s tumour was the largest tumour Mater Mothers had removed from a baby of her size.
“We don’t know why the tumour grows, but it arises from embryonic germ cells and is four times more likely to occur in female infants,” Prof Kumar said.
“Saylor’s tumour was extremely large and very complex. The tumour extended into her pelvis and abdomen.
“Many of these babies do not survive the pregnancy. Essentially these tumours function like a large vascular shunt causing a lot of blood to return to the heart.
“In some babies the heart can’t cope with this extra volume and heart failure occurs.”
Mater Mothers’ and Queensland Children’s Hospital neonatal and paediatric surgeon Dr Peter Borzi performed the painstaking operation to remove Saylor’s tumour.
The surgery involved five blood transfusions and the removal of part of Saylor’s tailbone to prevent the tumour.
Despite the odds, Dr Borzi said Saylor was “strong and resilient”.
“She has made a fantastic recovery, with the help of the teams at Mater Mothers’ Hospital and Queensland Children’s Hospital,” he said.
