'I've been given a second chance': Grandfather's pioneering “through-the-eye” brain surgery by Leeds doctors
Leeds surgeons perform UK-first operation to treat brain aneurysm - through an eye socket
A grandfather has been spared invasive skull surgery after surgeons in Leeds performed a UK-first operation - by operating through his eye socket to treat a brain problem.
Andrew Wood was “shocked” when he discovered that he had a brain aneurysm, which is a swelling in a blood vessel in the brain which can be fatal if they burst.
Surgeons would usually have to cut off a proportion of the skull and move the brain to provide treatment.
But pioneering experts in Leeds used a UK-first technique to treat the aneurysm through Mr Wood’s eye socket.
“This meant that we could directly access the aneurysm without even having to touch the brain,” said consultant neurosurgeon Asim Sheikh.
Mr Wood was in hospital for just one night after the procedure, when traditionally patients would be in hospital for around a week.
The 61-year-old grandfather, who works as a builder, returned to work in May just a few weeks after the pioneering operation in February.
The aneurysm was found while Mr Wood was being scanned for a separate medical issue last spring.
“I was shocked. I didn’t have any symptoms whatsoever,” he said.
“Mr Sheikh got his hands on my case and it just went 100 miles an hour from there.
“I’m in the building trade so the way it was explained to me was: you can do something causing minimum damage and get the same result.
“I thought it was great.”
The team of experts from Leeds used the new minimally invasive technique to get to Mr Wood’s aneurysm.
Mr Sheikh said that Mr Wood “got the best of both worlds” by having the surgery.
The team behind the procedure performed a similar operation in 2024 when they removed a brain tumour through a patient’s eye socket – another UK-first.
Mr Sheikh said: “As we gained more experience, we realised that the same approach could be used to access other pathologies in the similar area – in Andrew’s case a brain aneurysm.
“His aneurysm happened to be in a very easily accessible area, which would have been perfect for this technique.
“And that means he can get the best of both worlds of the surgical treatment of his aneurysm – the best possible, durable cure for his aneurysm while cutting down on the drawbacks of having surgery including big cuts and scars, big incisions on the head and also the morbidity of going through the brain and retracting the brain – all that is completely taken away by this minimal access surgery.”
To prepare for the procedure, biomechanical engineers from the hospital created a bespoke 3D printed model of Mr Wood’s eye socket and surrounding skull base anatomy as well as the aneurysm.
This allowed Mr Sheikh and consultant maxillofacial surgeon Jiten Parmar to prepare and rehearse the procedure, tailored specifically to Mr Wood’s anatomy.
Mr Sheikh said the operation is a “significant step forward in minimally invasive brain surgery in the UK”.
Mr Wood added: “I was in hospital for just one night.
“I was asked to make some toast and a cup of tea to make sure my faculties were OK, I had another quick scan and then they asked if I wanted to go home.
“It has been perfect since, I’ve had no double vision, no pain, I’m back at work – just have to watch out that I don’t hit myself with a two by four.”
He went on: “Thanks to the skill of the surgical team, I’ve been given a second chance.
“I’m really grateful for their kindness and expertise – they are an outstanding team. I’m proud to have been part of such an important procedure and I’m amazed at how quickly I recovered and returned home.”