Edeilson Nascimento, a 29-year-old tire repairman, told reporters Friday he is feeling great after the three-hour surgery earlier this week. He is expected to be released from a hospital in the city of Recife next week.

Nascimento said he got into a fight in 2007 and was attacked by assailants when he returned home. At the time, doctors only removed the knife handle, fearing that pulling the blade from his head would cause brain damage. But three years of intense headaches led Nascimento to take a chance on the surgery.