ANA Discussion Forum
Useful Information => Physicians => Topic started by: BrandyDWade on April 22, 2011, 01:17:59 pm
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I had surgery with Dr. Friedman on April 6th, 2011. I just wanted to post to let anyone who is considering the House Ear Clinic to know that Dr. Friedman is amazing. He has a great personality and he is just a fantastic surgeon. My acoustic neuroma turned out to be a meningioma (they are very similar) and my facial nerve was growing on top of the tumor. He had to be aggressive removing everything and yet my facial nerve is intake. I had slight temporary facial paralysis after surgery, which has already returned to near-normal.
It amazed us how personally invested he was in our case. The other doctors, Dr. Shwartz and Dr. Steffan were equally wonderful. The staff- the nurses, audiology department, the office workers- were also great. We just had as good of an experience as we could have possibly had.
If anyone wants to talk to me about my experience or has any specific questions, please feel free to contact me! I would love to share my story and answer any questions. I had some amazing people help me out and give me tons of advice and I'd love to return the favor now. : )
I just want to say, if you are out there reading this, and you are dreading your surgery and scared... Here I am two weeks and two days after surgery- at home and telling you how well it all went. : ) It's going to be okay! : )
Brandy Wade
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I have always heard wonderful things about HEI & the Dr.'s there. Glad you had a successful surgery and a good experience all around!
K ;D
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Glad that you had such a good experience at House. I had my AN surgery there about three years ago and still consider it to be the most amazing medical experience I could ever hope to have. Doctors, nurses, hospital staff -- they have it down to an absolute science and yet the personal touch and attention given to each patient and family member is extremely impressive.
Best wishes as you continue your recovery.
Catherine (JerseyGirl2)
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Brandy .....
I PMed you earlier. Such an encouraging post and I'm right behind you! Maybe I will even have the same room you did. :D
Many prayers for a continued good recovery.
Clarice
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Brandy,
Wow! Congrats! So glad to see that you had a great outcome :) Makes me so happy to see these stories!
Dr Friedman removed my AN almost a year ago! Hard to believe it has been that long. I just wanted to second your opinions on Dr Friedman and the staff at HEI and St Vincent's. I would also have to give a special shout out to the PT staff on the neuro floor! My PT was amazing and really inspired me to get out of bed and take those first few scary steps towards walking again!
And of course, THANK YOU, to Donnalynn, who I just saw posted above for helping me get to where I needed to be ;D
Good luck with your continued recovery!
Kris
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Yes, it is amazing the personal attention they all give out there, from the House surgeons to the hospital staff at St. Vincent's, despite the many times they do these surgeries. So glad to hear that you also had a good experience and are doing so well in your recovery!
Cindy
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Hi Brandy! I had a meningioma also and went to House. I had Brackmann, Schwartz and Steffan..I couldn't have been happier with the care I received. Being a nurse I can be difficult to please:) How big was yours? Did they get it all out? How are you? What approach did they use? I had translab, deaf in right ear. No balance or headache issues. I would email you directly but I can't figure this site out
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So glad to here it went well. Do you live in LA or did you travel? If you travelled how long did you stay in LA? I have talked to Dr. Schwartz a lot and he is helpful Thx Terri
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It is always so nice to hear good things come out of stuff like this! I had Dr. Brackmann/Schwartz at HEI and like you, I had nothing but positive experiences (Well...the silver iodine treatment on my wound wasn't quite so pleasant, but still...:)
Jay
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I more than 100% agree. I had the surgery about a month ago at HEI with Drs. Friedman, Schwartz and Steffan and they all are AMAZING! :)
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Ditto to all of the above. The whole experience far exceeded my expectations!
Clarice
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OMG...they are awesome
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Brandy this is so reassuring for me to read. I just found out about my tumor July 17, 2011 and I am scheduled for surgery on
August 24, 2011 with Dr. Friedman, Dr. Schwartz and Dr. Steffan. I hope my outcome is as great as yours. Thanks for sharing your story.
Rick
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Rick .....
Same team I had three months ago. They are awesome. Wishing you well.
Clarice
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Brandy...the radiologist told me they trained physicians all over the world or were great doctors. I had them July 14, 2011 and it was my second surgery. They were great and I felt like new. They take good care of you.
Terri
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I was so relieved to read your post! I had my MRI last Wed and my doc called me friday night with the results. 1.6cm AN....still desiphering out what the rest of the report means. We have been on the computer since Friday night. We live in VERY northern CA so our choices are UCSF, Stanford (or other So Cal), UC Davis...and I keep reading alot of great things about House.
I want it removed. I have 6 young children and I am the stay at home parent. I am scared and all of those feelings. Read and looked at pictures while realizing it is BRAIN surgery and it makes me feel ill.
Questions: Will I have hair shaved? Do they let you shower or at least help with that right away? Will I be myself and not debilitated pretty soon after surgery? I don't want to look or act different. I have pride in myself and I am really important to my family...the fact that I chose to stay home when we created our family. I just need some answers....as they come. I am glad you all are out there and sharing this journey. Stephanie
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Hi Stephanie and welcome to his forum of caring, supportive new friends .....
I read all of your posts in various threads, but will reply to each one separately.
First of all, take a deep breath, you are not alone with this decision. Yes, it is totally your decision on what you are going to do, where you are going to go for treatment, and when ..... but this forum exists to help the stress level during the decision-making phase.
Secondly, send for the free ANA information to assist you in sorting out the options. See: http://www.anausa.org/index.php/contact-us These materials will be a big help in answering general questions about acoustic neuromas.
Thirdly, because of the rare nature of ANs, we always urge patients to find physicians with the most successful experience treating acoustic neuromas specifically. You are fortunate to have House Ear Clinic in your state, even though at the southern end.
There are a number of House alums active on this forum right now. I can only speak for myself, but I had a wonderful experience with Drs. Friedman and Schwartz doing my surgery last May ..... no complications and uneventful recovery.
Your questions:
Depending upon the surgical approach used (and doctor preference), only a small strip of your head will be shaved ..... usually just wide enough for the incision and in most cases for women, your hair will cover it easily post-op.
Most docs will not let you wash your hair until the stitches are out (if stitches used), which is usually 7-10 days post-op; but you will be able to shower (using a shower cap) as soon as you are discharged. If you have balance issues post-op, and most people do, for at least a short while (depends on how much compensating your brain has already done before surgery), you will have assistance as long as you need it when up ..... in the hospital, that is.
It is very, very individual how quickly you bounce back from MAJOR surgery. For many people, the first couple of weeks post-op they are physically rather wobbly and very tired. Some people have headaches (I did not!). Much depends upon the patient's attitude and motivation to get back to a normal routine. I have had several major surgeries in my life and the AN surgeries were similar in a 4-6 week recovery time to regain strength.
Feel free to private message me if you want any additional information about House.
Many thoughts and prayers!
Clarice
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I go to these replies over and over as I will be having Translab on my 1.6cm AN on Jan 25, 2012. I have six children to finish raising, a lot of things left to do in this life, and I feel better each time I read the posts about where I am going for this surgery. Thanks for sharing.
STephanie
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Hi, Stephanie ~
I've been following your posts on this thread but didn't venture a response because, as often happens, Clarice did all the heavy lifting in terms of answering your questions accurately. She is a valued member. I'm glad you now have a surgery date. That will help you focus and feel a bit more in control of the situation.
For whatever it may be worth to you, I was diagnosed with a 4.5 cm AN in May, 2006 (at age 63) and underwent Retrosigmoid approach 'de-bulking' surgery a few weeks later. De-bulking surgery entails the neurosurgeon slowly and v-e-r-y carefully peeling layers off the tumor and reducing it's density, making it amenable for later radiation. He also severed the ANs blood supply. I came through the 9-hour surgery with no real complications and was discharged from the hospital 5 days later. I was driving again, with my doctor's approval, within less than two weeks. Three months later, as planned, I underwent 26 FSR treatments. They were uneventful. My AN symptoms (dizziness, loss of the sense of taste, severe fatigue) all disappeared within 24 hours of the surgery, never to return. My last MRI scan (2008) showed the beginnings of tumor necrosis and shrinkage. Today, at 68, I feel great. Whatever small post-op 'reminders' I have are invisible to others and have no impact on my quality of life. My experience is not at all uncommon. I trust that you'll get through your Translab surgery with few problems and enjoy a rapid recovery, as I did. Many of us will be thinking of and praying for you as your Big Day (Wednesday,January 25th) approaches and you're always welcome to post a question, concern or whatever here as well as contact members via the PM system.
Meanwhile, I urge you to attempt to remain optimistic and, next month, go into your surgery with reasonable but positive expectations. I did, and it worked well for me. :)
Jim
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I had an excellent experience with HEI and St. Vincent's (Drs Friedman, Schwartz and Stefan). Translab surgery 6 weeks ago on 2 cm AN previously treated in 2006 with stereotactic radiation but which had started to regrow.
I am not sure what I can add to the glowing reviews that HEI and St. Vincent's receive here. Perhaps one useful comment would be with respect to surgical removal of prior irradiated tumours. My experience with this has been excellent with full facial nerve preservation and minimal symptoms thereafter. I understand that is not always the case but Drs Schwartz and Friedman really made the process almost routine.
St. Vincent's ICU nursing team is wonderful.
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Dr. Friedman actually just sent me an email saying he will be back on Tuesday. He asked if I had mailed my films yet. I was just so floored that he emailed me on his time off. I do plan on sending my films to him to get his opinion. I find it just wonderful that he takes time out to talk to us. ;D ;D ;D