(WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- A St. Charles grandpa is breathing a lot easier after surgeons removed a tumor the size of a football from his heart.
Michael DiLillo was suspicious of a tightness in his chest that had stayed for months.
"The reason I decided to seek care is I was experiencing some chest issues," he said. "Not real severe. Not to the point where it limited any of my activity, but I know I didn’t feel quite right."
Doctors at Northwestern determined he had a large and rare tumor. DiLillo was "scared beyond belief."
"How could it be possible that I could have something growing that it could bepressing against my heart," he questioned.
Cardiac surgeon Dr. Christopher Mehta agreed to perform the complicated surgery to remove the one and a half pound tumor that weighed twice as much as a typical heart.
"You know I’ve seen a handful of these and by far this was the most aggressive appearing cancer, especially from what we could tell from the imaging and the echocardiogram and so forth," he explained.
In January of last year, the team operated for 12 hours to remove the tumor and repair the damage it had done.
After a long recovery, DiLillo is ready to welcome his sixth grandchild next month. His wife, Marianne reflected on the recovery process.
"It’s like you’re starting all over with him again and you don’t expect your husband to be your child later in life," she said.
"They become a child to you and you have to let go. You know, they say let your kid go. Whatever happens, happens."
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