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A week after playing golf, Pauline Staples had a
stiff shoulder and could not raise her arm above her head. An
X-ray of her shoulder accidentally found a lump in her lung.
Further pulmonary testing confirmed the tumor, a growth doctors
referred to as "probably not benign."
"I was pretty shaken up," Pauline says. "I
hadn't thought in those terms."
Then Pauline heard about Dr. Paul DiGiorgi.
Practicing through Lee Memorial Health System, Dr. DiGiorgi became
the first thoracic surgeon in Southwest Florida to perform formal
lung lobectomies, actively removing a large part of the lung,
through the less invasive VATS lung lobectomy procedure.
"I do surgery with a scope, no rib spreading, no
muscle cutting," says Dr. DiGiorgi, a cardiovascular and thoracic
surgeon. "With the scope inside the chest, you can drive the
camera anywhere you want to see. You see magnified detail of
each corner of the chest. I feel it's much better than trying
to look in with your eyes."
Many of the same operations that used to require
opening the chest completely can now be done by use of a scope.
Many lung problems, such as lung resections, draining fluid or
biopsies, qualify for the VATS lung procedure, although severely
large tumors or removals of the chest wall may still call for open
thoracic surgeries.
"The difference in pain is astonishing," says Dr.
DiGiorgi, who operates at HealthPark Medical Center and Southwest
Florida Regional Medical Center. "Essentially, the patient
feels no pain other than the discomfort of the temporary chest
tubes. There are lower amounts of bleeding and lower
percentages of pneumonia. The benefits are significant."
Pauline remembers an abscessed tooth being more
painful than the lobectomy she had on the right upper lobe of her
lung. The 78-year-old spent 24 hours in the Intensive Care
Unit and two days in a step-down unit before going home. Other
patients may be discharged two days after surgery, expediting their
return to work.
I feel very blessed," Pauline says, tears welling.
"Throughout the whole thing, I had a certain feeling of peace, I was
in capable hands, in good hands. I thank my lucky stars Dr.
DiGiorgi came to Fort Myers when he did."
Paul DiGiorgi, M.D.
Gulf Coast Cardiothoracic Surgeons
8010 Summerlin Lakes Dr., #100
Fort Myers, FL 33907
239-939-1767
To learn more about surgical services at Lee Memorial Health
System,
click here.
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