Al Ain: A baby boy born with a tumour underneath his tongue is now able to breastfeed after undergoing surgery performed for the first time in the UAE.

The 3cm by 4cm non-cancerous tumour that prevented the child from feeding was removed by a team of doctors at Al Ain Cromwell Hospital for Women and Children in a 90-minute operation.

Dr Rajasekhar Cingapagu, the consultant paediatric surgeon who led the operation, said: “The extragonadal germ cell tumour is an extremely rare condition. The tumour originated from the tongue and was firmly attached to it. Only 16 cases have been reported in the world.”

This was the 17th and the first reported case in the UAE.

The baby, born to an Emirati couple at the hospital last month, was discharged after he started feeding on the third day after the surgery. “He is now latching well and gaining weight two weeks after the surgery,” Dr Cingapagu said.

The baby was spoon-fed for a few days until he was deemed fit for surgery.

The operation was performed under general anaesthesia.

Dr Cingapagu said the tumour develops in germ cells that are found in areas of the body other than the ovary or testicles.

It was a case of a developmental malfunction, he added.