Before I was introduced to her, I had imagined her to be an old, experienced-looking doctor. I was rather astonished when I finally saw her. She is a young woman, born in 1962. She graduated from Thai Binh Medical University in 1985 and completed her medical thesis on the subject of lung cancer in 1995. Recently she has become the country’s only female thoracic surgeon.

Following her father’s wish, she embraced the medical profession, but unlike other female medical students who usually specialise in epidemiology, obstetrics and pediatrics, To Kieu Dung chose to become a surgeon. There were only 4-5 female students in her graduating class. She likes the field she has chosen because she thinks that surgery is something clearly defined, success or failure being immediate.

Speaking with her, I realised that beneath the young woman’s charming appearance is an inflexible will couple with a passionate love for her profession. No one understands the complexities a surgeon must go through during an operation better than a fellow surgeon: the skill, the meticulousness required of the surgeon during an operation, especially at the moment when a patient’s life hangs in the balance. In thoracic surgery in particular, because the surgeon must take into account the respiratory system, the bronchial components rich in veins and arteries, complete precision and perfect adherence to strict regulations are vital: investigation into the circulatory function must be followed by surgery made inside the thoracic cage, the remaining path having to return completely to normal functioning after the operation.

She has been lucky enough to have had an exceptional teacher, Professor Nguyen Viet Co, an experienced surgeon who has trained her and given her advice since her first days as a surgical student. Since then, she has performed hundreds of operations. Her eyes have seen pain on so many patients’ faces. When she speaks of her first surgery, her voice still quivers with emotion: "I was trembling with fear: the patient lost a large quantity of blood. But I realised that my teacher was beside me and I became calm again." And now? "Now surgery is just another ordinary, daily task!" she said with a serene look.

I have been informed that she is responsible for 5-6 operations every week, not including emergency cases, most of which are complex. Some operations can last up to 3 or 4 hours, sometimes even longer, and during operations she has become completely exhausted but there is no opportunity to rest. She must remain calm, clear-sighted and ready to make quick decisions in any circumstance. One patient, Nguyen Thi Loan had a very large thoracic tumor weighing 1.1 kilos. Agricultural work keeps Loan busy all year round, and living in the country she had little opportunity to consult a doctor. When her tumor was discovered, it was already very large. Luckily Dr To Kieu Dung succeeded in removing it.

In her profession, she often experiences moments of great joy from performing successful operations, as well deep sadness when a patient cannot be saved. Nguyen Van Long, a young boy from Thanh Hoa, suffered from a malignant tumor as big as a grapefruit, which occupied almost all his thoracic cage. Even after the operation, he had only a short time to live. "Thinking of him still makes me sad. The memory of his sad wide-open eyes still haunts me," she confided.

In May 1997, she was the only Vietnamese surgeon to be sent to Taiwan to take a course on the use of endoscopy in thoracic surgery. This method is only applied in a certain number of cases in which the pleura is exposed to the air or when bleeding occurs in the thoracic cage. This new surgical method reduces the period of treatment from 10-15 days to 3-5 days. In 1998, she used endoscopy in 54 operations at the Institute of Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases.

Beside her work as a surgeon, she is also the vice head of the Department of Surgery. In spite of being busy from 7am until evening, she devotes all the energy and attention she has to her patients: "They need me… I Think that a doctor’s greatest happiness is to serve patients…", she said, smiling. She then hurried into the surgery room where another patient was waiting for her.

I stood there and followed her departure with my eyes until her slender figure in the white gown disappeared behind the door.

By VIET THANG        
(Vietnam Cultural Window)