Girl, 15, 'youngest' to have conscious brain surgery for condition

A 15-year-old patient has been described as the youngest known individual to undergo conscious brain surgery to treat an arteriovenous malformation. Tilly Phillips, now 16, underwent a 12-hour conscious craniotomy at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool when she was 15, to address a blood-vessel abnormality that can cause seizures and may be fatal. The condition affected brain areas responsible for speech, movement, and vision. Surgeons woke her for about 30 minutes to map functions in real time and protect vital tissue while removing the malformation. Although she cannot remember being awake, the medical team said she was coherent and completed picture-naming tasks. A clinical psychologist, Cathy Grant, said electrical stimulation briefly halted her naming, helping identify tissue that needed protection.