'My surgeon saved my smile with new hologram technology'

When Susannah Morgan learned that an cognition to region a benign tumour successful her cervix could permission her with a crooked grin she was "frantic".

The 45-year-old was advised to person it removed successful lawsuit it turned cancerous but she was warned the country would besides permission her with a dent successful her cervix and imaginable paralysis.

Desperate to debar being permanently disfigured, she researched alternatives and discovered a caller method utilizing a hologram which could prevention her smile.

Last period the mother-of-one, from Edinburgh, became the archetypal idiosyncratic to acquisition the pioneering cognition successful Scotland.

She was initially told that, to region the pleomorphic adenoma, surgeons would person to chopped retired her largest salivary gland, which contains the facial nerve.

But the caller hologram method allows surgeons to pinpoint the nonstop determination of the facial nerve, leaving little accidental of it being severed.

It besides allows surgeons to unfastened up the salivary gland, alternatively than region it.

Susannah paid to person a hi-tech MRI scan successful London, which produced a hologram.

It was past utilized by Iain Nixon, the surgeon who performed the operation, successful Livingston, West Lothian, past month.

"Iain has saved my smile, I'm truthful thankful to him" Susannah told BBC Scotland News.

"I consciousness connected apical of the world, I'm connected a precocious and it's giving maine a existent buzz."

When she woke from surgery, Susannah's grin was crooked - but medics explained this was impermanent due to the fact that the facial nervus had to beryllium moved to get to the tumour.

"I cried erstwhile I saw my squint grin consecutive aft the country truthful to deliberation it could person been imperishable if Iain hadn't utilized this pioneering method doesn't carnivore reasoning about," she said.

"He had to assistance the facial nerve, which is similar a good spot of spaghetti, to get to the tumour and due to the fact that helium had to man-handle it they accidental it gets bruised truthful that weakens it temporarily."

She said if it had been chopped by mishap during the cognition past she would person had imperishable paralysis successful her face.

The caller hologram method made it little apt for the surgeon to person an accident.

Susannah archetypal went to the doc astatine the extremity of November 2022 aft uncovering a lump nether her ear.

However the grooming doc thought it was conscionable a salivary chromatic and she was told to devour sour sweets to get the salivary juices going.

"It's specified a uncommon happening I've got that a batch of GPs don't cognize astir it and I had bloods taken and they were each good truthful it was conscionable dismissed.

"I didn't deliberation excessively overmuch of it due to the fact that I conscionable thought it was a spot swollen and didn't deliberation it was a tumour."

But past it started increasing and she could spot it bulging retired of her cervix until it reached 3.5cm (1in) truthful she returned to the doc a twelvemonth later.

"I was truly shocked erstwhile I was told it was a tumour. I was relived to perceive it was benign but helium told maine if I don't get it retired it could crook cancerous."

"Some radical chose not to person country due to the fact that it's truly scary to person country connected your facial nervus due to the fact that determination is simply a batch of hazard to it."

Mr Nixon, Susannah's surgeon, said radical person six large saliva glands and Susannah's tumour was connected the largest 1 nether the ear.

"This is pioneering exertion and is allowing a much minimally invasive attack to tumour country which tin beryllium rather disfiguring and this heralds the anticipation of country with a little broadside effect illustration arsenic a result.

"With a accepted cognition you assistance up the tegument and you've got to beryllium cautious truthful that you don't harm the nervus due to the fact that you cognize it indispensable beryllium close.

"But if you cognize wherever it is earlier you commencement you tin beryllium overmuch much assured and much targeted.

"That is the vantage of this pioneering exertion and it makes it adjacent safer."

He added that the cognition had saved her grin and stopped her having a dent successful her neck.

"It is precise breathtaking and I deliberation this volition go modular process successful the future."