Newly Diagnosed _ Middle Fossa Recommended

[Big Easy]

54 yr old male, diagnosed with an AN a few weeks ago.  Have had some hearing loss, lots of tinnitus, and a few bouts of vertigo.  I went to see Dr Gantz at U of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics last Tuesday (7/7/15).  My tumor is 4.4mm x 3.4mm.  Although this is considered small, Dr Gantz has recommended I have middle fossa surgery to remove it.  His feeling is that anything below 1cm has a great chance for hearing preservation and why wait until the tumor grows to do something about it.  I believe he is very highly respected in this field and so I have scheduled the surgery for early September.  Anyone else on here have a small tumor removed with this approach? 

[ANnIdaho]

Hi Big Easy,

I haven't had my surgery yet but am looking at having my AN removed by middle fossa at Keck with Drs Friedman and Giannatto in September.  There are several stories of patients that have had this surgery on this site.  Just type in middle fossa in the search.  I also found some interesting patient stories on the web by googling "middle fossa patient stories".

Best of luck on your decision.

Bonnie

[Echo]

At the age of 54 with a small AN, have you taken the time to consider Radiation or had a consult to discuss the option?  Gamma Knife has an excellent success record especially on AN's smaller than 1 cm.

Cathie

[michellef08]

Hi Big Easy,
I had Middle Fossa 2 years ago, and my tumor was also on the small side, but bigger than yours! Mine was measured at 0.9 x 0.7 x 0.6 cm originally, but then when they actually went in there, they found it was 1.4cm. I had my surgery at House Clinic in LA with Dr. Schwartz and Dr. Friedman, and they preserved my hearing completely! Let me know if you have any other questions!
~Michelle

[Big Easy]

At the age of 54 with a small AN, have you taken the time to consider Radiation or had a consult to discuss the option?  Gamma Knife has an excellent success record especially on AN's smaller than 1 cm.

Cathie

The doctors at U of I hospitals are not big fans of the radiation option.  They feel there isn't enough data to support it being a long term successful option.  That combined with the fact that they do about 100-150 surgeries a year with very good success of saving hearing led them to recommend surgery right off the bat.  I know I may be being naïve, but since Dr Gantz is pretty highly regarded in this field I have decided to go with his recommendation.

[PaulW]

The Acoustic Neuroma Association recommends seeking multiple opinions.
I would strongly suggest that you need to follow this recommendation before making a decision.
Your tumor is extremely small. Smaller than many tumours left behind after AN surgery to preserve the facial and hearing nerve.
This is major surgery... It is brain surgery, the downside risk is significant.
I had a friend who died after AN surgery aged 34. Removing a 2cm tumour due to an allergic reaction to the Anaesthetic, I have someone in my AN group who suffers eye, facial and taste issues, for the removal of a tumour 10mm. The surgeon worked at House, and operates on 50 ANs per year, so very experienced surgeon.  Many surgeries work out just fine, but rolling the dice for a tumour that small... Is it worth the risk.

I was going to ad the line " I am not trying to scare you but".   
Then I thought about it.... Yes I am trying to scare you into making a fully informed decision. If the surgery does go wrong you could regret the decision for life, especially if you have not spoken to to experts on radiation, or the pros and cons of Watch and Wait.

[mcrue]

I would certainly consult for FREE over the phone with at least Dr. Schwartz from the House Clinic in Los Angeles who performs Gamma Knife and traditional microsurgery. Also Dr. Steven Chang from Stanford, California who does Cyber Knife and Dr. Lundsford in Pittsburgh, PA who does Gamma Knife.

Those are 3 world-famous specialists who will review your MRI and records for FREE.

Best wishes in your decision-making process.