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Retired milkman’s entire lung removed through keyhole surgery in world first

Raymond Page, 74, plans to spend his summer with his wife in their caravan. - Getty Images
Raymond Page, 74, plans to spend his summer with his wife in their caravan. - Getty Images

A retired milkman’s entire lung has been removed through a tiny two inch keyhole surgery in a world first.

Raymond Page, 74, was the first in the world to undergo the revolutionary procedure to remove his lung which had developed stage 4 cancer, the most dangerous form of the disease.

After the surgery at Royal Papworth Hospital, the former milkman from Peterborough was left with a two inch scar and was up walking and joking with his wife shortly after.

The new technique involves a 2 ½-hour operation with a tiny cut in the abdomen between the ribs, reducing pain and time spent in hospital.

Currently, surgeons reach the lung through an incision sometimes four times the size in the side of the chest which can require months of recovery.

The president of the Society for Cardiothoracic Surgery, Richard Page, believes that the “pioneering” technique will become widespread and “will find its place in keyhole surgery for the chest.”

Raymond Page was diagnosed with bladder cancer in April last year, a month before his 50th wedding anniversary.

His wife, Jo, 69, said that “we celebrated knowing it might be our last” to enjoy with each other and their three children and eight grandchildren.

Following successful surgery two months later, Mr Page was found to have had a second cancer in his lung.

He told the Sunday Times that: "If it wasn't for the team at Royal Papworth, I don't think I'd be here now. I intend to make the most of life."

Now, Mr Page says that he is “"basically back to doing everything as normal" but has been taken off hoovering duties by his wife.

His wife said: "We've come so far. And I'm hoping we're going to keep going because I don't want to be without him."

"I never thought I'd see him come home. I didn't think he'd make it because Ray isn't one of the strongest people when he's ill."

The surgeons were able to reach Mr Page’s right lung through the two inch cut between his abdominal muscles, detaching and compressing the organ which they removed through an incision in his belly.

It took half the time that it usually takes to perform open chest surgery, with Mr Page being able to breathe without the help of a machine, meaning he could start physiotherapy quickly.

After the operation, even the hospital staff were surprised at the miraculous recovery of the 74-year-old.

His wife Jo said:"When we first got to see him in intensive care, we assumed he'd have all these tubes attached. Not my Ray. The nurse said, 'I've never had anyone in intensive care chatting before.’

"We sniggered to ourselves, because I thought, 'That's my Ray.' He was chatting about anything and everything, asking if the kids were all right and saying the car park fees were dear."

The technique pioneered by Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridgeshire is the latest in a long history of medical innovations for the hospital.

In 1979 they performed the UK’s first successful heart transplant, followed by the world first heart, lung and liver transplant seven years later.

Richard Page, the president of the Society for Cardiothoracic Surgery, said:

"The problem with going between the ribs is that there are a lot of nerves in the side of your chest.

"It's sensitive. When you make a cut between the ribs, even if it's a small cut, you bruise the nerves that are there, and that is why you get more pain from chest incisions than other parts of the body.

"Whereas if you go through the front of the tummy, then you're not disturbing the nerves nearly as badly. That's the philosophy of doing this — you are trying to avoid damaging the nerves of the chest."

In the UK, around 40,000 people are diagnosed with lung cancer with some 6,000 undergoing surgery.

While some are offered radiotherapy or chemotherapy to combat the cancer, many are only offered palliative treatments to provide some comfort as their condition deteriorates.

Many are diagnosed with cancer in later life, where invasive surgery can be something they do not recover from.

With Raymond Page’s 75th birthday next month he is undergoing chemotherapy as a precaution against the cancer resurfacing, but said that he’s looking forward to spending the summer with his wife Jo in their caravan.