BAYU by Respiratory Department, Sabah

01/09/2026

This case illustrates malignant central airway obstruction (MCAO) that progressed significantly over a two-month period following a delay in referral. The patient subsequently developed worsening breathlessness and exertional dyspnoea, eventually becoming oxygen-dependent. CT imaging showed extensive tumour involvement of the right upper and middle lobes, with only the right lower lobe remaining aerated.

Following rigid bronchoscopy with tumour debulking and airway stenting, patency of the RB7–10 segments was successfully restored and maintained. The patient experienced marked symptomatic improvement and was successfully weaned off supplemental oxygen within four days.

This case further highlights the important role of rigid bronchoscopy and airway stenting as a bridging therapy in selected patients with malignant central airway obstruction. Timely restoration of airway patency can provide rapid symptomatic relief, improve functional status and ECOG performance status, and potentially enable patients to proceed to definitive oncological treatment.

15/08/2026

Sabah Respiratory Update 2026 — Day 2

Day 2 covered the latest updates in COPD, asthma and bronchiectasis, practical spirometry interpretation and choosing the right inhaler for our patients.

A special thank you to DrJaya Muneswarao and Prof Andrea Ban together with the dedicated pharmacists of QEH, for running the hands-on Inhaler Workshop and making it such a great success!

Thank you to all our speakers, facilitators and participants for making Day 2 so meaningful.

13/08/2026

Sabah Respiratory Update 2026 — Day 1

A full day of learning, sharing and meaningful discussions at the Sabah Respiratory Update 2026.

Day 1 brought together a wide range of respiratory topics — from drug-resistant TB and rapid molecular diagnostics, to lung cancer, pleural disease, ILD, central airway obstruction and sleep apnoea.

Thank you to all our speakers, moderators, participants, sponsors and organising team for making Day 1 a success.

More to come tomorrow!

04/08/2026

🎉🎉 Just 8 DAYS to go! 🎉🎉

We are incredibly grateful for the overwhelming support for Sabah Respiratory Update 2026. Our physical seats are now fully booked! A huge thank you to everyone who registered. Your support means so much to us.

We can't wait to welcome you as we learn together through the latest updates in respiratory medicine.

If you haven't secured a place yet, virtual registration is still available, but places are filling up quickly!

We look forward to welcoming you very soon for two days of learning, engaging discussions, hands-on sessions, and reconnecting with colleagues from across Sabah and beyond.

See you next week!

08/06/2026

📢 REGISTRATION NOW OPEN! 📢

SABAH RESPIRATORY UPDATE 2026

Join us for two days of practical, up-to-date respiratory medicine featuring expert-led discussions, clinical updates, and hands-on workshops.

📅 13–14 August 2026
📍 Kota Kinabalu Marriott Hotel

Highlights include:

• Tuberculosis & Drug-Resistant TB Updates
• Pleural Infection & Pneumothorax Management
• Interstitial Lung Disease
• Chest X-Ray Interpretation for Clinicians
• Lung Nodules, Robotic Bronchoscopy & Lung Cancer
• Central Airway Obstruction
• Sleep Apnoea Updates
• COPD & Asthma 2026 Guideline Updates
• Spirometry Interpretation
• Hands-On Inhaler Workshop

Organised by the Breathing & Airway Unit (BAYU), Respiratory Department, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, in collaboration with the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS).

Scan the QR code on the poster to register.

See you in KK!

14/04/2026

Post-tuberculosis bronchial stenosis remains prevalent in Sabah and continues to pose significant management challenges. Treatment strategies are often individualized, as no single approach fits all cases.
We demonstrate a patient who developed symptomatic left lung collapse two months after starting ATT. Bronchoscopic evaluation revealed significant stenosis of the left main bronchus. Despite the stenosis being present for approximately three months, successful recanalization of the left main bronchus was achieved.
This intervention resulted in re-expansion of the left lower lobe, although the left upper division bronchus remained obstructed. Notably, the patient experienced marked symptomatic improvement following the procedure.
This case highlights that even delayed intervention in post-tuberculosis bronchial stenosis can yield meaningful clinical benefits, particularly in relieving symptoms and restoring partial lung function.

09/04/2026

Another case of malignant central airway obstruction (MCAO), involving the distal trachea and right main bronchus, was successfully managed with the deployment of a silicone Y-stent. The intervention resulted in immediate restoration of airway patency and significant symptomatic relief. Importantly, this served as an effective bridging strategy, stabilising the patient’s respiratory status and enabling optimisation for subsequent definitive oncological treatment. This case underscores the pivotal role of timely airway intervention in altering the clinical trajectory of patients with advanced malignancy complicated by critical airway compromise.

09/04/2026

A patient with newly diagnosed primary lung malignancy and multiple metastases to the brain and spine presented with malignant central airway obstruction. The patient was deemed unfit for rigid bronchoscopy under general anaesthesia. Therefore, tumour debulking was performed under local anaesthesia, successfully restoring patency of the distal LMB and LLB, although the LUD remained obstructed. This case highlights that, in carefully selected patients with malignant central airway obstruction (MCAO), tumour debulking can be safely and effectively performed under local anaesthesia.

31/03/2026

Diagnosing smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis remains a significant challenge in Malaysia, particularly in resource-limited settings where access to rapid molecular diagnostics is restricted.
Our Respiratory Consultant and Head of Department, Dr Hema Yamini, in collaboration with multiple centres and experts, has contributed to the development of a clinical algorithm–based scoring system to aid in the diagnosis of smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis, especially in primary care settings.
This scoring system integrates clinical, risk factor, and radiological parameters, providing a practical and structured approach to support clinicians in making timely diagnoses. The model demonstrated good diagnostic performance, with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.88, sensitivity of 86.2%, and specificity of 77.4%.

For further reading, please refer to:

  Tuberculosis (TB) remains a major global public health problem, accounting for an estimated 10.8 million infections and 1.25 million people deaths worldwide in 2023, with over 80% occurring in low- and middle-income countries [1]. There was an upward trend in TB incidence globally following the C...

31/03/2026

Last weekend, Dr Leong Wan Yi attended the prestigious ABIP 2026 Conference in Kochi, India

She was awarded 3rd place in the Oral Presentation category for her case on metastatic pleural synovial sarcoma.

Thank you to Dr Jamalul Azizi, Dr Tinku Joseph, and MABIP for the opportunity and support.

Congratulations, Dr Leong Wan Yi 👏