BABY WITH A GRAPEFRUIT-SIZED TUMOR ON HIS MOUTH AND FACE UNDERGOES LIFE-SAVING SURGERY BEFORE HE IS FULLY BORN

Before Jagger Scalzo had even taken his first breath, doctors already knew his life could be in immediate danger.

During pregnancy, Mycaela and Donovan Scalzo learned that their unborn son had developed a rare congenital tumor involving his mouth and face.

The mass was enormous. Doctors described it as approximately the size of a grapefruit.

More frighteningly, its position meant Jagger’s airway could be blocked the moment he was separated from his mother.

An Ultrasound Revealed Something No Parent Expected

The discovery was made during prenatal imaging.

Specialists diagnosed Jagger with an oropharyngeal teratoma, a rare congenital tumor that can develop around a baby’s mouth and throat.

Dr. Joseph Lillegard of Children’s Minnesota explained that these tumors can range dramatically in size.

Jagger’s was exceptionally large.

The tumor could prevent him from establishing an airway after delivery, turning the first seconds of his life into a medical emergency.

Doctors Needed to Act Before His First Breath

The family was referred to the Midwest Fetal Care Center in Minneapolis, a collaboration involving Children’s Minnesota and Allina Health.

Doctors developed an unusual delivery plan designed to protect Jagger’s airway.

During the cesarean delivery, Jagger would be partially delivered while remaining connected to his mother through the placenta.

That connection would continue supplying him with oxygen while doctors worked on the massive tumor and secured his airway.

Only when the medical team was confident he could survive independently could the delivery be completed.

Both Mother and Baby Faced Serious Risks

The procedure was frightening for Jagger’s parents because it carried risks for both baby and mother.

Mycaela later recalled entering the delivery room without knowing whether she or her son would be OK.

A large multidisciplinary medical team was prepared for the birth.

Doctors successfully removed the grapefruit-sized mass and protected Jagger’s airway, allowing him to complete the transition from the womb safely.

The outcome was the one his family had desperately hoped for: their baby boy survived.

His Journey Wasn’t Over

Jagger still faced a difficult recovery.

He later experienced a brain bleed and required treatment for hydrocephalus, a condition in which excess fluid builds up within the brain.

Altogether, he spent 76 days in the hospital before his parents were finally able to bring him home.

For Mycaela, that journey home became an emotional moment she would never forget.

After weeks surrounded by hospital equipment and medical teams, Jagger could finally meet his older sister at home.

The Baby Doctors Called a Remarkable Outcome

By April 2022, Jagger had reached another milestone his family once could only hope for: his first birthday.

His mother described him as happy, smiling and growing stronger.

Dr. Lillegard said the difference between the frightening situation doctors initially faced and Jagger’s eventual outcome was remarkable.

After surviving a massive congenital tumor, an extraordinary delivery procedure, 76 days in the hospital and further neurological complications, Jagger finally had the chance to simply grow up.

For his family, there was one word that best described their little boy: a miracle.

Source: WCCO/CNN, April 7, 2022.