Egyptian Patient’s Pancreatic Cancer Surgery at West China: Referral, MDT Review and Recovery

West China Hospital, Sichuan University, described the treatment of Heba, a 49-year-old patient from Egypt, in a report published on June 12, 2026. Following complex pancreatic cancer surgery in China, she was recovering steadily, no longer required parenteral nutrition and had good blood glucose control. The hospital expected her to be discharged and return to Egypt.

From seeking care in Egypt to assessment in Chengdu

Heba had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer about seven months earlier. She sought care at several Egyptian hospitals, but almost all declined to operate because of the high surgical risk. Her friend, Egyptian physician Ahmed Elgendi, who had trained at West China four times, recommended the hospital. She was admitted to its Liver Transplantation Center on April 5.

Imaging and laboratory findings suggested pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. Although the tumor was not large, it encased the junction of the portal, splenic and superior mesenteric veins and lay close to the middle colic artery. These relationships made vascular reconstruction particularly difficult and became central to the team’s assessment.

On April 9, Professor Wu Hong led a multidisciplinary team involving the Liver Transplantation Center, Pancreatic Surgery, Abdominal Oncology and Radiology.

How the surgical plan changed

The initial plan included total pancreatectomy, duodenectomy and portal vein reconstruction, seeking tumor removal while preserving quality of life as far as possible. The MDT held repeated discussions and prepared both a detailed operative plan and contingency protocols.

On April 16, Wu Hong’s team and Professor Peng Bing’s pancreatic surgery team completed a six-hour operation. The hospital said more tissue was preserved than initially anticipated: the procedure was a subtotal pancreatectomy, with the spleen, right colon and some pancreatic endocrine function retained.

Glucose, cardiovascular and nutritional care

After surgery, Endocrinology and Metabolism, Cardiology and Clinical Nutrition jointly managed blood glucose, blood pressure and dietary intake. Clinical parameters gradually improved. At publication she had stopped parenteral nutrition and maintained good glycemic control.