Ready for surgery

[qtens]

Hello everyone,
My husband was diagnosed in Sept 2013 and is having surgery on Monday.  It has been a difficult fall season but we are ready to get this taken care of.  We are in Michigan and have Dr. Bojrab and Dr. Pieper doing his surgery.  We are confident we have the best doctors.  I am happy to read many of the posts on this forum and to have the support but also disheartened to hear about how many have had multiple procedures and to hear of the post-op issues.  We have been told that they are hoping they will get it all out, hope not to damage his facial nerve and he will definitely lose all hearing in his left ear.  I know I am worried far more than my husband.  How much care will he need?  When will he drive again?  Does he need round the clock care and for how long?  Looking for positive feedback, please and thank you!

[Jim Scott]

Hi ~

AN surgery is complicated and challenging for both doctor(s) and patient but most surgery patients do well.  I'm one of them.

In May, 2006, at age 63, I was diagnosed with a large (4.5 cm) AN.  I was blessed to find a mature neurosurgeon with decades of experience in operating on acoustic neuromas.  I was very concerned about surgery damaging my facial nerve and to give me the best chance of avoiding facial nerve damage he proposed a two-stage plan that involved, first, surgically 'debulking' the tumor (peeling off layers) using the Retrosigmoid approach and severing it's blood supply, making it vulnerable to FSR that I underwent 90 days later in a preplanned sequence.  The surgery was successful with no real complications (no facial nerve involvement) and I recovered fairly quickly.  I had lost all hearing in the affected ear so that was not an issue.  The 26 FSR treatments were uneventful and I did not suffer any side effects.  The upshot of the experience was that subsequent MRI scans indicated the remaining tumor showed necrosis and slight shrinkage and seven years later I'm doing great.

Your husband will need some care for a week or so following his hospital discharge but should regain his strength slowly.  I was taking one-mile walks and driving within a fortnight of my hospital discharge.  Be aware that we are unique individuals and not everyone recovers at the same pace.  Some are raring to go in no time, others need longer and any post-op complication can impede a full recovery.  It was probably over a year before I felt totally recovered and my balance never returned to 100% but doesn't pose any problems unless I decide to take up tightrope walking.   

I would also note that going into surgery I had complete faith in my doctor's ability, a very positive attitude, a spiritual faith that I employed and a supportive family.  These all add to the odds of a good recovery from AN surgery.  I hope your husband has a great surgical outcome.  Both of you will be in my thoughts and prayers.  Please try to keep us updated.  Thanks.

Jim

[leapyrtwins]

Hope your husband's surgery goes well; he's in very good hands.

Don't be scared by what you read on the Forum.  Most people tend to come here when they are newly diagnosed, trying to make their treatment decision, and/or dealing with issues, and then they find no reason to stick around.  There are a lot of people who don't return once their life is back to normal.  That said, there are some of us "old-timers" who hang around despite not having issues.  It's something we like to do to show that there is life after an AN 

My surgery (done in Illinois) was in May 2007 and my outcome was excellent.  Only lasting "issue" is SSD (single-sided deafness) that I've alleviated greatly with the help of a BAHA.

When your husband returns to driving depends on him and his doctor; some people drive sooner than others.  It took me 6 weeks but only because I had the "luxury" of a caregiver to taxi me and my children around for that amount of time.  And although I took some time to drive again, I went back to work part-time 2 1/2 weeks post op (desk job) and full-time 4 weeks post op.

Recovery takes time and patience is key (although often hard to come by in the early days).  Some days your husband will find that it's one step forward and two steps backward, but tell him to hang in there.  Most docs will tell you 6 weeks for recovery, but it depends on the patient and the outcome. 

He should listen to his body; and his doctors.  Am hoping for an uneventful recovery for him.

Best,

Jan

[vthiru1]

Hi,

I had my AN Retrosigmoid surgery on Nov 18th to remove 3.2 cm tumor and am recovering pretty well. Sounds like you are confident and positive and that will really help..keep up that spirit. I would say don't think too much about the recovery now, just take one step at a time and focus on the surgery..Walking is definitely helping me to regain balance and strength..also am looking for some kine of Vestibular/Physical therapy, which will help me to regain balance and strength fast..I haven't started driving yet, since I have my friends doing the car pooling. Am thinking of not driving for at least a month, but as others mentioned it depends on the individual and you should listen to your body..Good luck..we are here with you