When you think of surgery, do you think of a musical performance during the procedure? Probably not. Operating rooms are often quiet, sterile places. The noise is limited to the hum of machines, the clink of equipment being picked up or laid down. 

Yet for one group of Italian doctors and nurses recently, they got to hear the performance of a man’s lifetime — and all during his own brain surgery. When a 35-year-old musician needed surgery to have a brain tumor removed, Rome’s Paideia International Hospital was where he went.

Dr. Christian Brogna recently operated on a musician’s brain. Photo courtesy of Paideia International Hospital

The hospital’s neurosurgeon, Dr. Christian Brogna specializes in what is called ‘awake surgery’. Brogna told CBS News that the successful procedure required a 10-member team, with advanced technology. “The tumor was located in a very, very complex area of the brain,” he said.

Moreover, the patient is left-handed. This makes things more complicated because the neural pathways of the brain are much more complicated.”

The patient, known only as C.Z., is a saxophone player and had been concerned that the removal would leave him unable to perform. Brogna said that to help the surgical team map the different functions of the man’s brain, C.Z. played the theme from “Love Story,” which was released in 1970. He performed the Italian national anthem, as well.

The doctor said his patient, who has been identified only as C.Z., played the theme song from the 1970 movie “Love Story,” and the Italian national anthem, at various times throughout the surgery. “To play an instrument means that you can understand music, which is a high cognitive function,” he said.

“It means you can interact with the instrument, you can coordinate both hands, you can exercise memory, you can count — because music is mathematics — you can test vision because the patient has to see the instrument, and you can test the way the patient interacts with the rest of the team,” Brogna said. 

Brogna operating on C.Z.’s brain. The patient played his saxophone during the nine-hour surgery. Photo courtesy of Paideia International Hospital

The most important task for Brogna, he said, was preparation. “Every patient is unique, every brain is unique, so we really need to know the patient very well,” he told CBS News. Prior to the surgery, the doctors met with C.Z. multiple times leading up to the operation. 

“When we operate on the brain, we are operating on the sense of self, so we need to make sure that we do not damage the patient as a person — their personality, the way they feel emotions, the way they get through life. The patient will tell you what is important in his life and it is your job to protect his wishes,” Brogna said.

Brogna said that C.Z. was already back to his new life. “Every surgery is a window on the brain, on how it works, and while we are learning, we are taking the whole of the person — his life, his passion, his hobbies, his job — into account,” he said. “That is the goal.” Watch below to see the fascinating procedure and the patient’s amazing performance.

Source: CBS News