Info on Dr. Jackler at Stanford

[Louzilla]

Hi Everyone,
I'm having surgery at Stanford Dec. 6th and was wondering if anyone had any information on Dr. Robert Jackler at Stanford and formally of USF.  He's the chair of the head and neck surgical department at Stanford. I really liked him at the consult and he does a lot of these AN surgery's.    I have a small 3mm x 6mm tumor in my left ear and he's doing middle fossa to try and save my hearing. Pretty stressed about the whole thing  (especially the post op dizzy throwing up fest), and I'm not sure if reading some of these posts are helping, however I can't stop.  I think I'm pretty lucky that my tumor was found at such a small size. Any information is greatly appreciated.

[matti]

I had my surgery at Stanford with Dr. Joseph Roberson from the California Ear Institute back in 1998.  I don't believe Dr. Jackler was there at that time, but I have heard wonderful things about him and trust me, you are in very capable and caring hands.

I also had middle fossa, but my tumor ended up being larger than suspected (3.5 cm) and I did end up lose my hearing nerve. As far as the dizziness after sugery, I really did not have much. When I was tested for balance, it showed that I had lost 86%, so my body had already been compensating. The nausea I had came from the anesthesia and pain meds, but got that under control quickly.

I understand how stressed you are, as the wait is the hardest part. Do you live in Northern CA? I live in San Ramon. Please feel free to e-mail me if you have any questions or just want to chat.

hugs,
Cheryl

[Louzilla]

Thanks Cheryl for your reply.  I live in Reno so it's just a short plane flight to Palo Alto.  I think I'm in good hands too.  I was going to go to the House Clinic in LA, but my local ENT said Dr. Jackler is also an excellent choice.  After meeting him, and reading his bio I'm really comfortable with my decision.  I was just double checking because I could on this message board.       

Your post op experience makes me feel a little more relaxed about it.  I'm hoping the small size of my tumor plays to my benefit. You're right the waiting is the hard part.  So many things going through your mind, I just want to get it over with.

The prospect of balance issues is what has me most concerned because I'm a cyclist, and a adaptive ski instructor in Tahoe. I'm really glad to hear that you haven't had much of an issue with that.  Losing my hearing is a concern but I think I could adjust to that if it's in the cards. What has your experience been like after losing your hearing? 

I have to count my blessings that this isn't cancer, and my prognosis for a full recovery is excellent.  Thanks again Cheryl, and I'm glad your doing so well.

[HeadCase2]

Louzilla,
  Don't be overly concerned with post-op nausea during the first day or two, that you may have heard about.  They have various drugs to combat nausea.  I only had nausea in ICU imediately after they injected steroid medicine, so they switched to an oral steriod and I had no further nausea episodes.
  Best of luck with your treatment, it sounds like you've found an experienced treatment team.  We'll be 3wishing you the best 12/6.
Regards,
 Rob

[krbonner]

Pretty stressed about the whole thing  (especially the post op dizzy throwing up fest), and I'm not sure if reading some of these posts are helping, however I can't stop.  I think I'm pretty lucky that my tumor was found at such a small size. Any information is greatly appreciated.

Just FYI - I was never nauseated post-op.  That may have been because of anti-nausea drugs (I don't remember if I had them in ICU), but I never felt it.  Dizzy - yes.  Though even that wasn't too bad if I didn't move too quickly.  And it got a lot better in a matter of a few days.  I hope you have an easy recovery!

Katie

[Louzilla]

Thanks Katie and Rob for your insights.  Hearing from people that have gone through this is really helping to alleviate anxiety.  I can even feel the positive vibes coming through the computer!   Just another great benefit of the internet.   Thanks again - Lou

[Sam Rush]

My brother-in-law had Dr. Jackler for his AN and I had Dr. Brackmann at House for mine,     we both had excellent results.  Dr. Brackmann who developed the modern surgical tecqniques speaks very highly of Dr. Jackler.  He would have been my next choice if Dr. Brackmann was not available.

[Louzilla]

Thanks Sam.  I found out that Dr. Jackler actually studied at House for time.  I'm glad you and you brother-in law are doing well.  It's great to read about positive outcomes. Thanks - Lou

[Obita]

Hi Lou:

Soon after I got to ICU one of the nurses asked if I was nauseated.  I said no........then two min. later I said YES  and before I could say:  I think I am going to puke, the antinausea med was in my IV and all was well.  No further nausea meds were necessary (unless they kept giving them to me and I didn't know it).

Best of luck to you,  Kathy

[Mark]

I think Dr. Jackler at Stanford is an excellent choice for AN surgery. He has done over a 1000 AN's and is generally regarded as one of the most published doctors on AN's in academic circles. I chose to do CK at Stanford, but if I had done surgery I would have used Dr. Jackler. He also works with some world class neurosurgeons at Stanford such as Chang, Schuer and Steinberg so you would have an excellent team .

Mark

[matti]

Dr. Steinberg assisted in my surgery and WOW! what phenomenal man and neurosurgeon. The time and attention he takes with each of his patients is incredible. He made rounds with his med students 3x per day and has the rare ability to focus on the patient but more importantly, the person. His students would cite each patient as a case number and he would reprimand them.    My friends son was born with a blod clot in his brain and many times she would find Steinberg sitting by the baby's bedside, singing and talking to him.

Cheryl