Napoles set to undergo surgery

MANILA, Philippines – Alleged pork barrel mastermind Janet Lim Napoles will finally undergo surgery this week to have a myoma removed from her uterus, her counsels said.

In a phone interview with Rappler, special counsel Bruce Rivera said Napoles may undergo surgery on Tuesday, April 22, or Wednesday, April 23.

Fay Isaguirre Singson, another Napoles counsel, told Inquirer Radio 990AM the surgery will take place Tuesday evening. 

Earlier, officials from the Ospital ng Makati (Hospital of Makati) said Napoles would have to undergo a biopsy before any medical procedures take place. Hospital director Dr. Perry Peralta said the biopsy would determine the kind of surgery that Napoles needs to undergo.

Hospital officials said Napoles would have to stay confined for another 26 days after her surgery. 

Surrender, court motions 

The controversial figure surrendered in August 2013 after an arrest warrant was issued against her and her brother over serious illegal detention charges. Napoles was detained at a police camp in Laguna for almost 7 months before she was transferred to the Ospital ng Makati.

Napoles was moved to the hospital after a Makati court granted her motion for medical surgery and hospital confinement. In her motion and in a tearful plea before the court itself, Napoles said she was worried because tests performed in different hospitals yielded different results. (READ: Napoles pleads before Makati court: Nahihirapan na ako)

She had been complaining of "hypoglycemia, drastic weight loss, chest pains, severe abdominal pains, and profuse menstrual bleeding." Her last medical exam at the Camp Crame General Hospital revealed a myoma in her uterus.

It was an expert witness, a former president of the Philippine Medical Association and chairman of the Makati Medical Center ob-gyn department, who said Napoles' condition was "urgent" because of the possibility of cancer. – Rappler.com