ANA Discussion Forum

General Category => AN Issues => Topic started by: jbbrown15 on February 14, 2013, 10:11:22 am

Title: Surgery after Radiation
Post by: jbbrown15 on February 14, 2013, 10:11:22 am

Has anyone done it for reasons other than continued AN growth?

I'm considering surgery 2+ years post radiation.  After radiation, I was diagnosied with secondary (to the tumor) increased intracranial pressure (the pressure was causing my pre-diagnosis symptoms, but I didn't know it at the time I chose radiation). My pressure symptoms have worsened (despite medication) and now include eye issues.  I have also now been diagnosed with chronic interior jugular vein occlusion, which my neuro-opthamologist believes is due to direct pressure from the tumor and contributes to my pressure problems.

JB

Title: Re: Surgery after Radiation
Post by: jbbrown15 on February 17, 2013, 03:12:40 pm

Interesting follow-up (at least, interesting to me!).  My neurosurgeon says that my acoustic tumor is not causing my increased intracranial pressure.  He's going to talk to my neuro-opthamologist.  Another concern that has been raised is drainage through my jugular veins.  My left IJV is occluded and my right has filling defects.  I may have 2 totally unrelated conditions.  This is surprising to me because for 2+ years I have been treated by a very well-respected neurologic center as having secondary increased intracranial pressure caused by my tumor.

I'm more confused than ever!

Title: Re: Surgery after Radiation
Post by: mikechinnock on February 18, 2013, 10:41:31 pm

I can indeed understand your confusion. I was in that space when my neurosurgeon told me I needed a third operation and my neurologist told me I could not tolerate a third operation, as I had already had 40 hours of surgery, so he expressed the thought that another operation would kill me.

I went to the University of San Francisco and to Tufts Medical Center for an opinion by prominent neurosurgeons. At the consultation at Tufts the neurosurgeon asked me how much I trusted my neurosurgeon. I thought on that for a bit and decided that after 40 hour+ under his care I had more trust in his skill than I could describe sanely. I went with my neurosurgeons advice and am here today to talk about it.

Good luck with what I know is a very tough and confusing situation.