Hypnosis Used to Remove Inoperable Colon Tumor in Awake Patient

Surgeons at the General Surgery 1 University of Turin’s Molinette Hospital have successfully performed a right semicolectomy—the surgical removal of the right side of the colon—on an awake patient. The procedure, which took place on April 6, 2026, integrated clinical hypnosis with loco-regional anesthesia techniques to treat a patient who had previously been deemed inoperable under general anesthesia.

The case is reported as the first internationally documented instance of a major colonic resection performed using this specific synergistic technique. By avoiding general anesthesia, the medical team was able to provide a life-saving surgical solution to a patient whose clinical fragility made standard protocols prohibitively risky.

Challenges of General Anesthesia in Fragile Patients

The patient, a 76-year-old man from Apulia, was suffering from a bleeding neoplasm of the right colon. However, his medical history presented an extremely complex clinical picture that precluded the use of standard surgical protocols. He had recently undergone a prolonged hospitalization for a massive pulmonary embolism, which had resulted in severe respiratory failure.

Because of this respiratory failure, other medical facilities had judged the man to be inoperable. The anesthesia team at Molinette Hospital noted that general anesthesia would have required artificial ventilation, which could have led to unpredictable and potentially fatal respiratory complications for this specific patient.

The Personalized Awake Protocol

To overcome these contraindications, Professor Mario Morino and Dr. Valentina Palazzo developed a customized awake protocol. This approach allowed the patient to remain conscious and maintain autonomous breathing throughout the operation, eliminating the need for a ventilator.

The procedure was made possible by combining three distinct medical techniques:

• Abdominal wall blocks to manage localized pain.
• Conscious sedation to keep the patient in a state of wakefulness.
• Clinical hypnosis to manage mental distress and increase tolerability.

Clinical hypnosis played a fundamental role in the success of the intervention. According to the surgical team, it drastically reduced the patient’s need for sedative drugs and minimized mental distress, which helped maintain optimal neurovegetative stability throughout the surgery.

Execution and the Role of Hypnosis

The operation lasted approximately 60 minutes. Because the patient was awake, Professor Morino had to adapt the operative technique, prioritizing speed of execution and extreme delicacy in tissue manipulation to ensure patient comfort.

While the surgery was being performed, the patient conversed with Dr. Valentina Palazzo. Using hypnotic techniques, Dr. Palazzo mentally transported the patient away from the operating room and to the countryside of his home region in Apulia.

Post-Operative Recovery and Outcomes

The medical team described the patient’s post-operative recovery as exceptional. One of the primary benefits of the awake protocol was that the patient did not require admission to the Intensive Care Unit, a step that would have been mandatory had the intervention been performed under general anesthesia. Instead, the patient returned directly to the hospital ward.

The recovery timeline showed immediate functional improvement despite the patient’s fragility:

• Within the first 24 hours: The patient resumed oral feeding and autonomous ambulation.
• On the second day: Intestinal function was completely restored.
• Throughout the process: Pain control remained optimal.

Due to this rapid recovery, the man was able to safely undertake the journey back to Puglia a few days after the operation.

Implications for Oncological Surgery

Medical officials suggest that this approach represents a new frontier for the treatment of fragile patients who require life-saving interventions but cannot tolerate standard surgical risks.

This intervention demonstrates how surgical excellence, combined with personalized medicine and the integration of techniques such as clinical hypnosis, can expand the boundaries of oncological surgery. The Turin model led by Professor Morino confirms itself as a national benchmark for the treatment of that patient population who, despite needing life-saving interventions, present prohibitive risks for standard surgical protocols.

Livio Tranchida, general director of the City of Health and Science of Turin