Stuck in the Middle

[Pat]

Hi to all,
 My name is Pat, age 59 never had surgery, very seldom see a doctor or sick.I live in N.E.N.C. in a rural area and recently lost the hearing in my left ear ( seems I have a lot in common with many others) Had MRI have tumor 2cm, asked the Doc his recommendation........told if I was younger he would recommend surgery if older Radiation .......so I`m waiting, praying the tumor does not grow. Have another MRI scheduled for Dec 13th.....if it has grown guess I`ll schedule surgery.
 My Doc Lassen, works with Steiner at UVA in Charlottesville, VA.............but have just about decided to have it removed vs radiation............................
 Does the "ringing" stop after surgery / radiation?
Will continue to read the posts, sooooooooooo much info here, thanks
Pat

[Obita]

Hi Pat:

Welcome to the place where almost all of us have the ringing!!  Mine is more like eeeeeeeeee.  The bad news Pat is that the tinnitus is probably here to stay.  Before my AN was removed and for about 6 months post op, there were many different noises in my head.  Now, it is just the constant eeeeeee that I don't notice unless I am in a very loud situation.  Then, it really roars for the whole next day.

Good luck to you Pat.  It sounds like you have a good plan. 

Kathy

[krbonner]

Does the "ringing" stop after surgery / radiation?
Will continue to read the posts, sooooooooooo much info here, thanks
Pat

Welcome, Pat!  So sorry you have an AN, but glad you found your way to this forum.  To answer the question about tinnitus, is probably will not go away at this point regardless of what you do about treatment.  Mine changed tone after surgery, but didn't change volume, etc. 

Sounds like you have a good plan for now.  Nothing wrong with getting another MRI in a bit to compare and see where you are at that point.

Katie

[Pat]

Thanks for all the replies / info, I got my results back June 20th, 2007.
I`ve been wondering if Dec is too soon for another MRI?
I first started having that "full " feeling in my ear in Dec of 2004, told to take an antihistamine to drain it, never followed up on my symptoms after that just wrote it off to allergies / sinus problems.
The loss of my hearing "snuck" up on me.
Forgive me if it has been covered but most tumors in left ear / side?
Thanks , Pat

[Obita]

Hi Pat:

A six month wait before another MRI is pretty much the norm.  They will want you to use the same MRI machine and have the same radiologist read the new scan to get the most accurate measurement.

There was a poll on the forum not too long ago re:  age, side of AN and age when diagnosed.  If I remember right, it was pretty much even right vs left.

Kathy

[Sue]

Hi Pat,

I too had the fullness in the ear which is why I first saw my family doctor...also in the winter of 2004. Also my left side!  It took a full year, not till March of 2006, before I was diagnosed with an AN.  By then I had many more symptoms. Mine is also about 2 CM. I had just turned 60 and my doctor recommended Gamma Knife, which I did in April 2006. 

The symptoms of Acoustic Neuroma vary with each person, and I'm sure there is some kind of medical reason behind it all, but I just think of it as "how the cookie crumbles" kind of thing. Some have few symptoms, some have many. Most have some type of tinnitus, the lucky few do not.  Unfortunatly, AN's sneak up on us and then, even though they die a death from radiation or removal (or for some, the live on but never grow enough to ever do anything about them..) they leave their mark forever on our lives, one way or another.

Happily, the only symptom to pretty much disappearfor me was the "fullness". The tinnitus, the partial hearing loss, the facial numbness on the AN side, which includes the inside of the mouth and part of the tongue will no doubt be with me the rest of my life...and if it persists into the afterlife I REALLY will be ticked off!!!

Welcome to the forum..Sorry you had to find us, but glad that you did.  Good luck with your eventual treatment and recovery. 

Sue in Vancouver, WA USA