Newly diagnosed

[carmen g]

Hi,

I had sever hearing loss about 3 weeks ago.  I went to the ENT about 2 days after the hearing loss at the recommendation of my sister who is an audiologist.  I was put on predinsone and an anti-viral and sent for an MRI.  On Friday, late afternoon, I recieved the call from the doc.  So, 1.7 mm is the only dimension he gave, on the left side.  I do have some hearing recovery and will have a hearing test early this week.  I have been referred to see Dr. Muckle in Denver.  I will hopefully know when that will be early this week also.

I am a single mother of 2 boys, 9 and 6.  The timing of this is pretty bad as I have been looking for a new job and have 2 offers with one other potential and was to be making that decision soon.  I guess that I will wait until I see Dr. Muckle.  I am not quite sure what to tell the potential employers, except maybe put them off until after I see Dr.  Any advice on that one? 

Anyway, this looks like a great forum.  I guess I am part of your club now....

Carmen

[Mark H]

Hi Carmen,
welcome to the family. Sounds like your AN is about like mine, except I have twins. About 2 MM each. I have a bit of hearing loss, tinnitus on both sides, and a couple other minor issues, but so far nothing real bad. You'll meet a lot of good folks here. 
Mark

[Palace]

Hello Carmen g


Welcome and you will get amazing information here and I'm sure some from your sister who is an audiologist.  My tumor is 22mm and I did opt for Stanford.  (Cyberknife)  That was only three months ago for me.  

Yes, put off the potential employers because, if you ended up having GK or CK (radiation) then you could probably handle the job.  True, it isn't easy and there are things to deal with if the tumor is touching the brainstem.

You are in the right place and all will help you.

I just had shoulder surgery and have been off the forum.  I'm also having water behind the eardrum pain and a torn Vitrea of the eye.  I'm not on the forum much anymore but, email privately much of the time to Newbies!

Post as often as you like and with any questions you may have.  See the radiologist, surgeon, read, research and stay on the forum.  Gather information and make the decision as, it sounds like you are on top of things.



Sincerely,



Palace

[brasher]

hi carmen,
i cant give you much in the way of career advice, sorry, but i can give a little about your tumor.
first of all, i am sorry to hear that you have a tumor. secondly, don't panic. and third, do your best to stay positive.
there are options for this condition. you will need a good state of mind to be able to filter through all the information and make decisions for yourself and your family.
there are a lot of good people on this forum.... i am new at this, recovering from surgery recently, and the people on this site have been very supportive. i did not have any options, i had to have surgery and have it soon, because i was diagnosed very late in the game. however, it seems as if you caught yours pretty early, therefore giving you some options.
dont be bashful about asking questions on this forum, because not only are these people supportive, but some are very knowledgeable.

[brasher]

good luck and god bless you.

tony

[robinm]

Carmen g,

I had my surgery done with Dr. Muckle 6 months ago...He did his job well...and I am without any complications. I am deaf on AN side though...but, I already had lost all my hearing before the surgery..just check with Dr. Muckle about your options and be positive throughout your journey (I used to be laughing and joking all the time.)

[flier58]

Hi carmen g,
Welcome to our club  .  Carmen, as a mom to young child I can appreciate your anxiety.  I am not sure how big your AN is since in your message it shows 1.7mm and the footnote says 1.7 cm (I think footnote is right) but in both situation you do have options.  You can definitely consider radiosurgery that is less disruptive to your everyday life, you can still watch and wait or go microsurgery way.  Don't let anyone "bully" you into any of these.  Do your research and go with your guts.  You know whats best for you and your family.  I found this site, ANA archives and  www.cyberknifesupport.org sites most helpful to me. 
I am 4 mos. post CK and doing well.
Flier58

[BevM]

Hi Carmen:   I echo these replies.   Recovery time and surgery risks were key elements in my decision to have Cyberknife.  Do your research and have a list of questions for the Doctors. I had my treatments at Stanford and they do both open surgery and Cyberknife.  They recommended the Cyberknife for my 9.5mm tumor. It does take time to know the results of the Cyberknife but I am thinking positively and glad I made that choice.

Best wishes,

Bev

[carmen g]

Hi everyone and thank you for the welcome!

It is 1.7 cm, not mm.

I am just waiting right now to hear from the doctor about when I can get to Denver and see Dr. Muckle.  I am just hoping it is sooner than later, as I have the job decision to make.

Thanks again everyone for your support.
Carmen

[Obita]

Hi carmen g:

Welcome to the family - don't forget....you are not alone!!

Your AN is not huge, so you have time to figure out how to treat it. 

As far as the job change, most insurance companies have a pre-existing condition clause.  New insurance might not be
a good idea right now. 

Good luck to you, Kathy