When I had an MRI for sudden hearing loss of my right side, the MRI revealed a small schwannoma on the left. I have been in watch and wait mode for four years, with it growing a millimeter a year. (it is now 5mm)
After getting numerous opinions, including watch and wait some more, neuro surgery, fractionalized radiation, and Gamma knife...I decided on Gamma Knife Surgery with Dr. Douglas Kondziolka at NYU. I had the surgery on October 4, 2017.
My reasons to go ahead with it now include:
· I would need to deal with this eventually and even with the slow rate of growth, it is still growing with a potential adverse effect on hearing if it is left unaddressed.
· Allowing it to grow would just postpone the inevitable with no guarantee that doing so would still save my hearing. It could have caused hearing loss on that ear at any time, which would result in my being completely deaf.
· Data shows that good hearing in that ear is a good prognostic factor for maintaining hearing. I don't know what will be with my hearing later on, so another reason not to wait and observe anymore.
· My hearing could still deteriorate over the next year or two even if I didn't do the surgery.
· The relatively small size of the tumor and the distance from the cochlear enables the dose of radiation to the cochlear to be controlled.
I feel good about this decision and hopefully it will work out for me in the long run. The Gamma Knife surgery went well...really minimal after effects.... now just hoping that it worked, the tumor will die and my hearing will be maintained!
