A 132-pound (60-kg) ovarian tumor was removed from a 38-year-old Connecticut woman this year, according to two doctors involved in the case.

The patient, who wished to remain anonymous, reported that the tumor began growing at a rate of about 10 pounds per week in November. A medical team, including 12 surgeons, removed it in a five-hour procedure February 14 at Danbury Hospital in Connecticut, according to Dr. Vaagn Andikyan, a gynecologic oncologist for Western Connecticut Health Network and a lead surgeon on the case.

Dr. Vaagn Andikyan had never seen anything like it – a 38-year-old woman in critical condition with a 132-pound tumor in her abdomen. Andikyan said the team was prepared to perform open-heart surgery if necessary.

“During the surgery, we removed this gigantic tumor that originated from her left ovary. We removed her left ovary, her left (fallopian) tube, and we removed the affected peritoneal tissue that was adhering to the ovary,” Andikyan said.

The tumor originated in the epithelial cells lining the ovary and was “mucinous,” meaning it was filled with a gelatin-like substance produced by the tumor cells, according to Andikyan.

“Ovarian mucinous tumors tend to be big,” he said. “But tumors this big are exceedingly rare in the literature. It may be in the top 10 or 20 tumors of this size removed worldwide.”

The woman, who couldn’t walk and was severely malnourished because of the tumor’s size, is back at home raising her son and working again.

“She is in good medical health and in absolutely great physical condition,” Andikyan said. “She is resuming her normal functions.”

Health network physicians are studying the tumor, which began in an ovary, to determine how it grew to such a remarkable size.

“There is data out there about a tumor that was 200 pounds, but this is definitely one of the top 10 tumors ever removed worldwide,” Andikyan said. “We are doing genetic testing on it to determine if there is any mutation that caused it to grow as large as it was.”

While it may seem like an injustice to call the tumor benign, tests showed that it was not cancerous.