A WOMAN chose to stay awake during a life-saving operation in which surgeons removed a tumour from her brain.
Kineta Kelsall, 26, remained conscious during the ground-breaking six-hour procedure so surgeons at Salford Hospital could talk to her throughout.
Kineta, from Withington, Manchester became one of only 50 people in the UK to undergo the surgery called ‘awake craniotomy’, reports the MEN.
Speaking of the operation Kineta said: “During the operation I could feel them drilling into my skull it was like an aeroplane going off in my head, it didn’t hurt, I could just feel the pressure - it was such a strange sensation, like they were cutting meat in my head.
“My operation was so much safer because I was awake, people need to be more aware of this as an option - it’s scary but it’s mind over matter and today I’m here.”
When the tumour started to develop, the 26-year-old noticed she was becoming increasingly stressed and kept dropping things but didn’t know why.
"I would pick up a bowl of soup and drop it on the living room floor or coffee in a cafe. I would cry over the smallest of things or get angry and not really know why,” she recalled.
When Kineta lost feeling in the left side of her body she realised something was seriously wrong, doctors initially thought it was a trapped nerve.
However, when her health deteriorated she was rushed to Manchester Infirmary hospital, where they discovered a brain tumour.
Kineta added: “When you hear something like that you think this is it, I could die - at 25 that is the most terrifying prospect in the world.
"I could not even bring myself to call my mum," she said. "I was so so scared. I really didn’t want her to worry.”
Tragically, Kineta's close friend Jack Ryan, 26, was disagnosed with testicular cancer early this year too.
But to celebrate Kineta's 12-month anniversary and both receiving the all clear, the pair have organised the ‘Brain and Balls’ event at Kosmonaut.
They aim to raise awareness of the rare surgery Kineta underwent, help fundraise for cancer charities and thank those who helped them.
Raffle tickets are available after the event and drawn on December 21, 2015. You can also donate to Kineta’s cause here.
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