06/08/2025
👁 Surgeons just removed a spinal tumor through a patient’s eye socket, in a world first.
Here’s how this groundbreaking approach saved a young woman’s life.
In a world-first surgical breakthrough, doctors at the University of Maryland Medical Center removed a spinal tumor through a patient’s eye socket—a route never before used to access the spine.
The patient, 19-year-old Karla Flores, had a rare and aggressive chordoma tumor wrapped around her cervical spine and pressing on her spinal cord.
Traditional approaches posed high risks of damaging critical nerves and blood vessels. Instead, neurosurgeon Dr. Mohamed A.M. Labib and his multidisciplinary team pioneered a "transorbital" method, creating a surgical corridor through the eye socket to access the spine without external scarring or injury to vital structures.
This innovative approach preserved key neurological functions and allowed complete tumor removal, followed by proton radiation and spinal fusion surgery. The transorbital technique—previously used for brain tumors—was refined through extensive cadaver-based research. It represents a major leap forward in minimally invasive neurosurgery and demonstrates the power of anatomical precision, technology, and collaboration. Flores, now 20, is cancer-free and recovering well, a testament to the team's resolve to challenge conventional limits in pursuit of the best outcomes.
source
"In First-of-Its-Kind Surgery, Rare Spinal Tumor Removed Through Patient’s Eye Socket at University of Maryland Medical Center" via University of Maryland Medical Center (May 06, 2025). UMMC Media Relations
