ANA Discussion Forum
General Category => AN Issues => Topic started by: sher on January 08, 2009, 11:39:07 pm
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My CK Doc wants me to have an MRI on Monday to check for edema and swelling. I am having enhanced tinnitus, headaches and dizziness... so we will see what it has to show.
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Sher,
You have done a great deal of research before your treatment and as you know, you are in that timeframe that things could (or not) crop up. Please stay strong and know we are all here to help you through this.... please keep us posted about the MRI results and hang tough..... this can be (not always, but can be) the toughest timeframe of the wait post-radiation but we are all here to help you get through it..... you can count on it.
xo
Phyl
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MRI's are not fun for me so I can totally relate. However, as curious as I am, I know the goal is to let me know what is going on inside that head of mine. Remember to get a good night sleep and wear comfortable clothes. My MRI place lets me hear music and I wear that sleeping mask before I go in that way I imagine I am hanging out at the beach. Take Care and keep us updated.
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MRI's are not fun for me so I can totally relate. However, as curious as I am, I know the goal is to let me know what is going on inside that head of mine. Remember to get a good night sleep and wear comfortable clothes. My MRI place lets me hear music and I wear that sleeping mask before I go in that way I imagine I am hanging out at the beach. Take Care and keep us updated.
I recall mine having those 1970s stair air headphones that they used to have on airplanes, because obviously you cannot bring metal inside of the MRi, which I discovered the hard way.
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Sher:
Although an MRI session is no fun, even for those of us not suffering with claustrophobia, it is a very necessary and useful 'tool' for the doctor and his or her patient. In this case, you. Your doctor probably suspects swelling and wants to get a better idea of exactly what is happening inside your skull, in the affected area. I trust the MRI results will be both positive - showing a dying AN - as well as useful for your doctor to find a way (medication, most likely) to help you through this period. Many thoughts and prayers - mine included - will be with you on Monday. :)
Jim
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Thank you so much everyone for your encouraging words. I have the MRI on Monday and meet with my doc on Tues PM. I will keep you posted. My husband wants me to leave Tues night and fly for a one day trip with him.. not sure if I should chance the change in air pressure. Pretty crazy to think about refusing a trip to vegas.
Sher
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You should be fine to fly even if the MRI turns up an AN. Enjoy the trip and the time with your husband. Just my $0.02 worth.
Brian
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sher, go fer it! I'll give you $10 if you hit the blackjack table for me! :) Oh, you need a break from it all.. go and enjoy! :)
Phyl
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Thank you so much everyone for your encouraging words. I have the MRI on Monday and meet with my doc on Tues PM. I will keep you posted. My husband wants me to leave Tues night and fly for a one day trip with him.. not sure if I should chance the change in air pressure. Pretty crazy to think about refusing a trip to vegas.
Sher
Flying wont bother a AN !! ... go have a ball 8) !! remember, whatever happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, unless you want to share your millions in winnings with us ! :o ;D
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Got my results on my MRI. The UGLY AN has gone from 9.3 to 10.1 and is actively mad! no fluid or edema, which they were concerned about with my headaches. Everything is on track, of which I am thankful for. I fell a couple of times last year and my CK doc thinks that the herniation in my neck must be giving me the majority of headaches and pain I am feeling so off to the neurologist next week. I will have another MRI the end of June... I am hoping for necrosis at that point.
Sher
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Hi Sher,
Sounds like good news on the AN, if not also on the herniation in your neck. I'm not exactly sure what going from 9.3 to 10.1 means, or what being actively mad means either, but I'm pretty sure it is good, especially no edema. Hopefully your neurologist will have something useful to say about the neck.
Are you going to Las Vegas?
Steve
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Hi Steve,
The report read on the MRI that the mass in the cerebellopontine angle is approx 10.9 x 7.1 x 10mm and it was in sept 9.3 x 7.1 x 10mm meaning that the AN is mad and is swelling thus will die......LOL. The doc still didn't want to put me on steroids. I am hoping that I don't get much dizzier. I am glad that the CK is working at this 3 month interval. Just have to be patient. Thanks for everyone being such a support!!!! My doc was so suprised at how informed I am and knowledgeable of symptoms, senarios etc. and it is all because of this forum!!!! ;D
Sher
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Ah, okay, now it makes sense. :D
The doctors never seem to want to put you on steroids, it is just another can of worms they are reluctant to open. I'm sure they will intervene if it becomes really necessary. I hope you are able to manage in the mean time. Stay positive!
Steve
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Sher, When I began experiencing intense symptoms at around the same time as you, my doctor said it could be an indication that my tumor was responding well to the treatment. In other words, the intense symptoms are actually an encouraging sign that the AN is on its way to necrosis. My 6 month MRI showed swelling but by one year the swelling was gone. It's a bumpy road but it passes. It just takes time. Best wishes, Francesco
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Thank you Steve and Francesco! I am hoping that my side effects don't get much worse. I was pretty surprised at how much swelling there is at 3 months, but I guess that is fairly common. It can stop swelling now though. I am not sure how much more it actually can, do you?
Sher
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Thank you Steve and Francesco! I am hoping that my side effects don't get much worse. I was pretty surprised at how much swelling there is at 3 months, but I guess that is fairly common. It can stop swelling now though. I am not sure how much more it actually can, do you?
Sher
Hi, Sher:
1.6 mm increase in size along one axis of measurement is quite minimal. Not to minimize your symptoms, which we all know are hard to take and no small matter. But I want to assure you that the small amount of swelling you're having is a very, very small amount compared to what it could be. In fact, 1 to 2 mm is the margin of error for MRIs. The fact that you have an increase in measurement along only one axis is not conclusive; it may, in fact, be a result of the followup MRI simply measuring the tumor along the oblique transverse axis at a thicker slice of the tumor than it sampled in the previous MRI. An increase of a couple milimeters along 2 or more axes would have been more conclusive and worrisome. All that said, you can have clinical (internal) swelling that doesn't even show up as an increase in size on an MRI but can cause an increase in balance symptoms and further hearing loss.
In rare cases, a tumor can swell to well over twice its size along all three axes of measurement (oblique transverse, oblique AP and oblique craniocaudal).
I think you should take heart that your swelling is minimal. It seems that your recovery is well on track. I only wish to reassure you that your MRI results are very good and nothing to be worried about.
Sincerely,
Tumbleweed
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I did notice on the picture of the 3 month MRI that the tumor was still really white. I know that some have showed black, necrosis as early as 4 months... I am hoping that it truly is swelling and not growth... :(
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Donnalyn,
Thank you so much for your hugs and well wishes! You are a sweetheart ;D