Patient records
Name: Budi Santoso
Age: 68
Nationality: Indonesia (Surabaya)
Diagnosis: Benign prostatic hyperplasia (prostate volume approximately 120 ml, IPSS score 28, recurrent acute urinary retention)
Treatment Hospital: Department of Urology, West China Hospital of Sichuan University
Mr. Santoso, a retired captain from Surabaya, had spent his life battling the waves, displaying unwavering resilience. However, in his later years, he succumbed to an unseen "enemy"—his prostate. This small organ swelled to 120 milliliters, acting like a giant valve, tightly blocking his urination. He suffered from frequent urination, urgency, and difficulty urinating, waking up seven or eight times every night. Even worse, he repeatedly experienced acute urinary retention, each time requiring emergency hospitalization for catheterization. The pain and humiliation nearly drove him to the brink of collapse.
In Indonesia, doctors recommended a traditional transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP), but informed him that due to the enormous size of his prostate, the surgery would be lengthy, carry a high risk of bleeding, and might not be able to completely remove the prostate, resulting in a high long-term recurrence rate. Mr. Santoso was frightened; he didn't want to endure repeated surgeries in his later years.
When Mr. Santoso's son learned about a "laser enucleation" technique in China through us, they saw new hope. Our case manager quickly connected him with the Department of Urology at West China Hospital of Sichuan University. This is one of the birthplaces of the HoLEP technique in China and has extensive experience in treating large prostates.
Before his consultation, we arranged a remote consultation. After evaluation, the expert team at West China Hospital determined that HoLEP was the best option for his condition. Our medical consultant explained it to him with a vivid analogy: "Traditional electrosurgical resection is like scraping a watermelon slice by slice with a spoon, which is inefficient and prone to leaving residue. Holmium laser ablation, on the other hand, is like using a knife to cut along the boundary between the watermelon rind and the flesh, completely removing the entire flesh, which is thorough and almost bloodless."
The surgery was performed under clear visualization. The surgeon, manipulating a holmium laser fiber like a skilled sculptor, precisely removed the entire enlarged gland along the surgical capsule of the prostate, pushed it into the bladder, and then suctioned it out with a special shredder. The entire procedure resulted in minimal bleeding. The day after the surgery, after Mr. Santoso had his catheter removed, he experienced the long-lost, exhilarating feeling of urination for the first time. He said, "I feel like I've come back to life."
During the post-treatment and follow-up phase , we established a voiding diary for him, instructing him to record the frequency, volume, and frequency of urination each day. After returning to his home country, he regularly uploaded this data through our app. Our case manager would regularly communicate with experts at West China Hospital to assess his recovery. Six months later, Mr. Santoso's urinary function had fully recovered, and he could once again sleep soundly through the night, just like when he was younger.