6 Month Follow up after Gamma Knife and new growth

[TammyP]

Hello,
I am a member of the ANA but have never written in the discussion forum before, but I think now is the time. I had gamma knife July 5, 2015 and just recently had my 6 month follow up in January.  My tinnitus is increased significantly and my hearing loss has increased even more significantly. I take 600 mg gabapentin a day for facial spasms.  This amount is low and seems to have controlled my "twitches".   Here is my concern:  If I understand the doctor and my report correctly.  I have new growth.  And apparently, rare.  I believe he said only about 4% have the issues I have currently.  The growth now has "new extension" into the cerebellopontine angle  as we as new extension into the cochlear aperture.  The doctor explained that this, while rare, has occurred before (hence the 4%) and described the growth as a "mushroom" effect.    Just wondered if anyone experienced this before.  The doctor has suggested that a follow up in 4 to 6 months with an MRI will determine our next step which could possibly be another gamma knife treatment. He had me repeat a hearing test that shows drastic reduction in recognition. As you know, making the decision to have gamma knife surgery or microsurgery is always a tough decision, but I  wonder if anyone had to make a choice to have another gamma knife treatment and did,or opted for microsurgery.     I realize it's a personal decision, just wanted some input.

[Blw]

That was my most pressing question--what if gamma knife fails? I just do not want that surgery. Most of the people I talked to said that in some cases they can repeat. It depends on location I think. I personally would lean that way because if it works, you are done. If it fails, you get the surgery. The surgery is a little tougher after radiation, but I think the sentiment is that good surgeons who do this all the time say it is not that big a deal. However, this would all depend on location, how fast it is growing, your age, etc. There is minimal chance of cancer from radiation the first time, however, those odds surely go up with a second dose, though I don't know by how much. Hearing would probably be totally gone, and the remaining question is how much damage to the facial nerve. I also don't know if they radiate the whole tumor, or just the new growth. That would also make a difference.

[Patti]

As I just had a 3 month follow up MRI from SRS I would welcome any input!!!!!!  My re-growth happened 15 years after microsurgery.  Patti