Recently Diagnosed

[Bob M]

Hello. I am 51 years old and have recently been diagnosed with an AN in late January in my right ear. I had hearing loss in that ear for several years, nothing major, but around Christmas, I began to get light headed and felt a bit off balance. I also began to get mild headaches, which I still get, which I am not sure if they are allergy related.  I went for a hearing test and the doctor recommended an MRI as she suspected an AN.  The MRI proved her correct and I have an AN that is 1.7cm by .9Cm by .6CM. I live in the Dallas/Ft Worth area and my doctor strongly recommended that I go to Dr. Peter Roland at UT Southwestern. My appointment is March 29.  Has anyone used Dr. Roland and are there things that I should be doing at this stage? Is radiation treatment an option for this size AN? Any advise would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

[Mark]

Bob,

Your size AN is well within the limits of what radiosurgery can treat well. Mine was slightly larger at just over 2 cm and I have had a great outcome 4 years post treatment

Mark

[Larry]

Bob,

Sorry to hear that you are joining our club but you will find a number of good suggestions on this site - look for similar topics such as you have used and you will have info galore. The key thing is "do your own research" into the different options. Don't just take the Dr's views.


Larry

[thecakes]

   Sorry about your luck.  You'll be OK, the more educated you get the better.  My Dr. said to stay off these sites.  That there are sick stories, it will only make you feel worse.  He's wrong.  These sights will help teach you.  Read all.  There real life stories, learn from them.  The best advice to give you is ------get a well qualified, well experienced Dr. That is an advice, no an opinion.  This is your life.  A good Dr. can make a difference.  Do this. 

[Kilroy1976]

That's too bad that your doctor advised you to stay off of these sites. I don't know what I would have done if not for the information that I found here and the help that the forum members have given me. Often I found that the material here is more up-to-date, and certainly presented in a more timely manner, than what the doctors offered. It's also comforting to find people that can empathize with your problems, as opposed to a doctor who may or may not even be sympathetic.

[Bob M]

Thank you for the information.  The waiting period of over 2 months from diagnosis to my doctors appointment is the worst part.  Not sure if I should be doing anything else other than wait. Does anyone know if vitamins or anti-oxidents effect the growth of an AN?  I thought that I heard that somewhere. Thanks agian for the support as it does help immensely to hear from others that have been through this.

[Kathleen_Mc]

Bob: I have not ever heard of anything "we" can do that will stop/slow growth.
I can't believe a doctor would warn you off of a site like this, I can see cautioning you of taking everything to heart as each of us are individuals and such is/will be our outcomes. I can remember the first two years post-op, before I discovered ANAC (Canadian based support organization), I felt so alone in this and even though we didn't have an internet support message board or meetings just getting the newsletter and reading that others were going through the same things was a great support for me.....gosh I wish there was the internet support that there is today.
Kathleen