Hello, my name is Ali. My Fiance is 49yr's of age was diagnosed with AN on May 29, 2012. His tumor as of last and only MRI of May 29, 2012 measures 2.2cm X 1.6cm in axial diameter by 2.0 vertical diameter.
His tumor was diagnosed after he had a fall landing on his right shoulder and neck area on May 15, 2012, which resulted in herniated disc's at the Level C-3 - C-7, with pinched nerves in his neck, severe damage was confirmed and located the Level C-3 -C-4 nerve roots.
His occupation is Operating Engineer / Non-Union Tower Crane Operator, yes he's one of those Crazy native american's that sits 300' plus in the air in a little Crane Cabin he'd climb those cranes from the ground to top and sit there for 8 - 14 hours a day building those skyscrapers we see in all the big cities here in the USA.
His company denied his workers compensation, and the attorney representing him, said that his case is not appeal-able, and that he should apply immediately for Social Security Disability Insurance.
We did apply for SSDI on July 5, 2013 after receiving letter from Workers Comp denial, at our Local SS office, we submitted Neuro-Surgeons medical records documenting all health related issues as a result of MRI's for Cervical Injury & AN.
We also had his personal Physician in a letter confirm that my Fiance is totally disabled and unable to do any type of work, and with current AN compressing brain stem that he is terminal without immediate removal of AN.
The local SS office accepted his application as a TERI / Quick Determination Case on July 5, 2103, and we received the denial letter on August 1, 2013.
I myself am a 2004 Survivor of a Intramedullary ependymoma of the spinal cord ( Spinal Cord Tumor ), and remembered that my former employer hired an Attorney for me to get SSDI.
Some Washington, D.C. Group who read this will know us as I've shared in the Group about surviving my 2004 spinal cord tumor removal, and that my Fiance is the native american guy who operates Tower Cranes.
So I rummaged thru old records and found the attorney (who represented me). We called him and he suggested that we file for re-consideration for his SSDI benefits, and if we succeed we've saved ourselves his $6000.00 fee.
We've attended the Washington, D.C. AN Support Group, and found it to be a great resource.
If any members here have experience applying for SSDI, and what information exactly would prove helpful in the reconsideration application ( Form SSA-561-U2 ), that would be greatly appreciated.
His symptoms are the following:
Hearing loss= yes 45% in right ear, confirmed by audiologist / hearing test.
Ringing in the ears= constant sound ringing.
Vertigo= yes even when trying to step up onto a step stool in kitchen.
Trouble balancing= occasionally comes and goes.
Pressure in the ears and/or head= yes it's like he's swimming under water
Facial numbness= very slight.
Facial weakness= very slight.
Changes in taste= this he say's has changed significantly, nothing tastes the same.
Difficulty swallowing= occasionally this symptom affects him
Headaches= yes headache pain is sometimes stabbing pain from right ear down into right side of his jaw, sometimes the headaches are of Migraine cluster types.
Clumsiness= yes he's noticeably become clumsy, sometimes it seems like he's off balance and not picking up his feet when walking, he has fallen down numerous times.
Confusion= We've noticed in conversing with him on rare occasions, he'll stop in mid conversation like he's taking in a breath of air and after about 60 seconds or so, he'll reply back to us what were we talking about, and once we remind him, he continues the topic or our conversation.
Severe Nerve Pain= yes neck area, shoulder pain, right arm pain, with severe muscle spasms in right tricep muscle right forearm muscle, with what he describes as an electric shooting pain from neck all the down into shoulder down right arm and this pain continues into his thumb, index and middle fingers. Not sure if this is caused be AN tumor or Cervical herniated disc's & pinched nerves.
Insomnia= yes he rarely sleeps more than a couple of hours without waking up.
Severe Fatigue= yes his sleeplessness is causing him to constantly feel weak and tired when he's awake.
Blurred Vision= yes he's described not being able to focus to see clearly frequently.
Depression= yes because of AN symptoms, he's lost interest in most everything he used to enjoy doing.
Again my Fiance, has no health insurance, we can't afford to buy him health insurance, and without SSDI, his Neuro-Surgeon won't perform surgery.
**Your suggestions as to anything that should be included in his Request For Reconsideration, such as what should Neurosurgeon should include in his findings, other than his condition has deteriorated continuously in the past year and half since AN diagnosis.
Please PM me if you've had experience with applying for (and hopefully receiving) SSDI benefits. Any and all suggestions/responses will be welcomed and highly appreciated. Thanks so much!
Alicat
