The medical team discovered around 10 tumours inside the skull. According to the report released by Vivacharawongse's circle through his Facebook profile, Dr Regunath Kandasamy managed to remove two of the tumours, which measured 4.2 and 3 centimetres in diameter. One of these lesions had exerted such pressure on a titanium plate that had been implanted that it became deformed. For this reason, the surgeon had to replace it with a new cranial mesh of the same material, the information adds.
The recovery is going to be long and complex. But there are reasons for optimism. The doctors in Malaysia have highlighted that the patient retains completely clear speech and intact memory. They removed the two intracranial drains he had after the surgery before transferring him to a specialised unit to begin a new stage in the postoperative process.
Chakriwat was diagnosed with neurofibromatosis type 2 at the age of 13. This is a genetic disease that causes the appearance of tumours in the nervous system. In the case of the disowned son of the monarch, he has suffered successive complications over the years, culminating in this last intervention in a particularly serious condition.
Chakriwat is one of five children that the current Rama X had with his second wife, actress Sujarinee Vivacharawongse. The then crown prince, Maha Vajiralongkorn, married the actress - who starred in several low-budget films between 1977 and 1979 before announcing her retirement from acting - after obtaining his father's blessing, the revered King Bhumibol, although she was never well regarded by his mother, Queen Sirikit. The prince divorced Sujarinee in the mid-90s. She was denigrated and publicly accused of adultery and fraud, forcing her to emigrate with her children, first to the United Kingdom and finally to the United States.
The marriage had five children: the sons Juthavachara, Vacharaesorn, Chakriwat, and Vatchrawee; and one daughter, Sirivannavari (38 years old). She is the only one of these five offspring that Maha Vajiralongkorn claimed after the scandal with his ex-wife, asking his daughter to return to Bangkok to live with the royal family and maintaining her status and title of princess. It is noteworthy that Princess Sirivannavari is a very popular figure in Thailand, not only for her royal rank but for becoming an icon of style and beauty.
In 2011, the four Vivacharawongse brothers published a joint letter explaining their situation in exile. In it, they stated that since leaving Thailand, they had received "no support whatsoever," nor responses to the letters they periodically sent to the palace to inform their father of their studies, medical issues, and personal development.
The four brothers have remained mostly anonymous. However, in August 2023, one of them, Vacharaesorn, a lawyer by profession, was the first to appear in his homeland for the first time in 27 years. A few days later, his brother Chakriwat did the same. The two visited several places in the capital together, such as Siriraj Hospital, where they paid their respects to the images of their deceased grandfather and great-grandfather.
Vacharaesorn managed to establish his residence in Thailand in 2023. And on May 9, he was ordained as a Buddhist monk at Pariwas Temple to study the dharma. It is worth noting that in the country, it is very common for men, upon reaching adulthood, to embrace monastic life for at least a few months or years, without it meaning they renounce civil life forever.
Two years later, in 2025, Juthavachara and Vatchrawee attempted to return to spend a few days in their homeland. However, they reported that the Immigration authorities of the former kingdom of Siam prohibited their entry into the country on three occasions.