Hi ~
Thanks for posting. I can relate to you in one respect; I also was diagnosed with a 4.5 cm AN ( in 2006). My neurosurgeon, heeding my strongly-expressed desire to avoid facial and other complications, decided to 'de-bulk' the tumor, i.e. reduce it's density and allow it to collapse on itself. He also severed it's blood supply. He then teamed with an AN-savvy radiation oncologist to 'map' 26 FSR 'treatments' intended to destroy the remaining tumor's (now approximately 2.5 cm) DNA and, effectively, kill it. In short: it worked, better than I had a right to expect. No facial issues or headaches and only minor balance problems which I managed to surmount with some 'homemade' exercises which consisted of mostly walking on uneven surfaces and doing whatever was difficult to do until I was able to do it fairly normally. Today, 5 years later, at age 68, I'm good. Pretty much back to normal excepting being SSD (my hearing was lost prior to the surgery so no loss or gain there). My last MRI (2008) showed tumor necrosis (cell death) and the beginnings of shrinkage. I'm very conscious of any changes and will have another MRI if and when I notice anything different. My doctor concurs. I hope you can soon surmount your post-op issues and move on to a normal life. We're here to help and support you - so don't hesitate to ask!
Jim
