New Series of BBC Saving Lives in Cardiff Coming Soon: Meet the Stars of Surgery
Cardiff and Vale University Health Board is delighted to be back on BBC screens for a second series of Saving Lives in Cardiff. The first episode, due to air on April 9, will showcase the incredible work done by surgeons at the University Hospital of Wales, Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospital for Wales and University Hospital Llandough.
Jason Roberts, Executive Nurse Director, said: "I am delighted Cardiff and Vale University Health Board has been granted another opportunity to display the incredible work our colleagues do every day to treat our patients, both locally and across Wales. The second series of Saving Lives in Cardiff continues to show the complexities behind decision-making and our commitment to delivering safe and effective care. We appreciate no surgery is without its risk and this series shows colleagues acting with professionalism, expertise and compassion, clearly demonstrating the values of the Health Board."
Filmed in summer 2024, the first episode sees the BBC follow Cardiothoracic Surgeon Indu Deglurkar, Neurosurgeon Ravindra Nannapaneni, and Otorhinolaryngologist (Ear, Nose and Throat) Stuart Quine change their patients’ lives through surgery.
In a first for Wales, patient Terry is treated for an aggressive malignant tumour in his nose that has not responded to chemo or radiotherapy.
The surgery is a complicated one; the tumour sits deep within Terry’s head and the surgery has only been performed a handful of times in the UK.
Terry is on borrowed time, and the tumour needs to be extracted as soon as possible, via a specialised surgery robot.
Stuart said: “Terry presented a really difficult challenge, but we knew the use of robotic surgery would give me the best chance of successfully removing the tumour, and more importantly, of Terry having a good quality of life following treatment.”
“It’s a comfort to know that the surgery gave Terry a chance to spend more time with his family in the months that followed, travelling to places together and doing things they enjoy. It was worth the stress of carrying out a high-risk surgery for the hope that it gave him and his family”
He continued: “ The sad part of life is that bad things will happen to all of us and it’s how we deal with those problems that’s really important. For me, Terry has very much been a role model in that way. Terry approached every stage of his journey with courage and dignity and taught me a valuable lesson about how to respond to life's challenges.“
In the neurosurgery department, Ravi Nannapaneni treats Courtney, a young woman with Chiari Malformation – a condition that causes her brain to be too big for her skull and press into her spinal cord.
Her condition is further complicated by multiple sclerosis, a combination that Mr Nannapaneni has never seen in a patient. The operating window is small; Ravi must work within time limited by Courtney’s immunosuppressants.
Mr Nannapaneni is the most senior neurosurgeon within the Health Board, having first been appointed in 2004 and has operated both on children and adults. The neurosurgery team serves 2.5 million people across Wales.
Speaking on the episode, Ravi said: “I love when a patient goes home and has a good outcome. In neurosurgery, everything is interesting; you have no idea what’s going to come through the door. You think you’ve seen everything and then you’ll find something new.
I think the brain is a mystery and nobody understands how it truly works. If we have souls, the soul has to be in the brain – everything else can be replaced.”
At University Hospital Llandough, Consultant Cardiac Surgeon Indu Deglurkar treats Tyrone, a former world-champion in Thai martial arts.
Tyrone has a torrentially leaking aortic valve and an aneurysm which is an abnormal swelling of the aorta. His surgery was previously postponed due to complications with pneumonia and replacing the valve and the aneurysm of the aorta requires extensive open-heart surgery.
The condition requires Tyrone to undergo a large lifestyle change – else he runs the risk of causing further damage.
Indu has been a Consultant Cardiothoracic Surgeon for 17 years and performs a wide range of highly complex adult cardiac surgeries. The cardiothoracic team serving South-east Wales consists of 5 adult cardiac surgeons and 4 thoracic surgeons and provides performs around 700 heart and 550 thoracic operations every year.
"The best thing about the job is the ability to save or change someone’s life”, said Indu. “Operating on patients who may not see the sunrise and sending them back to their family is most gratifying. I get letters from patients ten years after their operations thanking me and this really keeps driving us.”
BBC Saving Lives airs on Wed 9th April at 9pm on BBC One Wales & BBC 2 National. Did you watch the first series? Catch-up on BBC iPlayer.