Surgeons remove football-sized tumor from Chicago area man’s heart

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    CHICAGO (WBBM) — Surgeons at Northwestern Medicine removed a football-sized cancerous tumor from a patient’s heart.

For months, Michael Dilillo, 69, noticed a slight tightness in his chest. Several doctors told the St. Charles man it was all a part of aging, but he wasn’t convinced.

Eventually, doctors at Northwestern diagnosed the rare tumor.

“How could it be possible that I could have something growing that could be pressing against my heart?” Dilillo said. “And so I was scared beyond belief.”

Northwestern provided a video of the 12-hour surgery during which doctors were able to successfully remove the tumor and repair the damage to Dilillo’s heart.

He remained in the intensive care unit for five weeks after the surgery.

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