The Stony Brook Medicine Department of Surgery is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2024. This milestone marks five decades of surgeons changing and saving lives with skill, innovation, and dedication.
Nikoleta “Niki” Pita was just 16 years old when doctors in Greece diagnosed her with thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS) after an injury during training. The diagnosis threatened to end her budding boxing career and dreams of representing Greece in the 2016 Olympic Games.
“I was way too young to give up on my dreams,” said Pita. “I was never going to give up boxing….I thought ‘I will find a way. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, maybe not next month or next year. But one thing is certain. I will be a boxing champion one day.’”
After a year of consultations with various doctors across Greece, Pita’s team doctor informed her about a physician attending an international medical conference in Athens. With hope and medical records in hand, Pita and her parents attended the conference.
They sought out Dr. Apostolos Tassiopoulos, Chief of the Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery at Stony Brook Surgery. Dr. Tassiopoulos explained that TOS is more common among certain athletes, including boxers, and varies depending on which structures (nerves, veins, or arteries) are compressed.
Dr. Tassiopoulos proposed thoracic outlet surgery as an option to release or remove the compressing structures. He assured Pita that most athletes who undergo the surgery can return to full activity within three to four months.
Pita and her parents were informed that she could have the surgery at Stony Brook University Hospital if they traveled to the United States.
Pita arrived in New York on August 31, 2014, for surgery scheduled the next day at Stony Brook University Hospital. Drs. Tassiopoulos and Thomas V. Bilfinger performed the procedure.
A week later, Pita returned to Greece with her parents. She regards the surgery as a significant milestone in her boxing career that “helped me to become a better, stronger, and wiser version of myself.” Upon resuming training back home, she often expressed gratitude by wearing Stony Brook baseball caps and Medicine T-shirts during competitions.
Visit the Stony Brook Medicine Surgery website to read more about Pita’s successful journey from boxing to law.