A Brazilian man crooned and strummed his guitar while undergoing brain surgery in his home country.
Anthony Kullkamp Dias, 33, sang six songs while the doctors performed surgery to remove his brain tumor, according to the Hospital Nossa Senhora da Conceicao.
Dias played “Yesterday” by the Beatles, a few Brazilian songs and an original number called “Emanuel,” which he dedicated to his son.
He was awake and talking during the surgery to monitor and map the brain for possible injuries to areas that control motor function and speech, which might be affected by the removal of the tumor, doctors said.
In an interview with CNN affiliate TV Globo, Dias said he found out about his brain tumor a few days before his son was born. The idea to play the guitar and sing during the surgery came the day before he was wheeled into the operating room.
The banker has played the guitar for 20 years, and also plays the accordion, keyboards, trumpet and the flute.
Dr. Jean Abreu Machado, the anesthesiologist and clinical director at the hospital, said the brain tissue does not have sensors to pain. However, the skin and other surrounding tissue do, causing an interesting challenge to doctors on how to “keep the patient awake and pain-free.”
Dias said he felt no pain and they removed 90% of his tumor.
