Hi, MVD ~
First, welcome to the ANA website although I know you wish you didn't have an acoustic neuroma. However, now that you have an AN diagnosis, I'm glad you've found this website and chosen to join the discussion forums. We're here to advise, educate and most of all, support AN patients. We can't offer strict 'medical' advice but we
can offer practical information based on real-world experiences of folks who've been where you are, now - contemplating the best way to proceed. Ultimately, that is a decision only you can make, but we'll try to help. The previous posters have offered salient advice. Surgery can be effective in removing the tumor but it carries risks, of course and is not always the answer. Obviously, irradiation is likely a very viable option for you at this point - but not the
only one, as you know. It is non-invasive and relatively easy to undergo. Best of all, it is usually successful (the AN dies). However, it is not a panacea and does carry some inherent risks of it's own. Facial paralysis is not usually one of them, although post-radiation swelling can sometimes cause some post-radiation facial disturbances.
I was diagnosed with a large (4.5 cm) AN in 2006 and soon thereafter underwent debulking surgery followed, 3 months later - in a planned approach - by 26 FSR (
Fractionated Stereotactic Radiosurgery) 'treatments'. Both procedures were eminently successful and I suffered no real complications....no facial paralysis or other issues. Unfortunately, my hearing was gone on the 'AN side' (my left) at the time of my diagnosis (
the result of procrastination on my part) and it did not return. However, with radiation, although hearing is rarely enhanced by the treatment, it usually does not diminish.
To answer your question regarding the wisdom of choosing observation ('watch-and-wait'); if the tumor continues to grow, there is a real risk of doing further damage to your hearing in that ear as well as other unpleasant symptoms. While there is no need to panic and make rash decisions, I would suggest you research (this website has excellent AN information) and realize that this cannot be ignored or pushed to the 'someday;' category (
where I put the need to repaint our condo).
Again, we welcome you and understand what you're dealing with. Christmas shouldn't have this kind of cloud over it and I hope you (and your son) will be able to surmount the anxiety and put your AN situation aside for a day so that you all can truly have a Merry Christmas.
Jim