OFA Grad Removes 51-Pound Tumor

Ogdensburg Free Academy alumnus Dr. David Dupree is not just any surgeon at Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank in New Jersey.

He not only loves being in the operating room, he also loves a challenging case.

Removing a 51 pound tumor from a woman's abdomen ranks right up there in terms of challenging cases.

The New Jersey woman didn't have insurance so she put off seeing a doctor until she was eligible for Medicare.

"She came to us weak, frail. She was dehydrated. She had an irregular heart rate," said Dr. Dupree.

It was in the ER that she first met the general surgeon, who determined she had a very large soft tissue tumor compressing a main vein to the heart. 

In his words, it was literally crushing her from the inside. 

Ultimately, emergency surgery was necessary.

"She had a 100 percent chance of dying if we didn't take her and who knows what her chances were even taking her.  It was very difficult," said Dr. Dupree.

The five hour operation was a success and with the publicity from the case Dr. Dupree is now hearing from others from across the country looking for help and advice.

"I love these hard cases. It's something where I'd love to build a career out of doing these long, ten-hour operations," he said.

Dr. Dupree says being a doctor for him is not about avoiding risk or even about the money.

In fact, he is often referred to by his colleagues as Dr. "Do-free."