I would suggest emailing your MRI scans/report to Dr. Chang at Stanford (CK) -- they have been treating ANs with CK since 1999 or so with very good results. House Ear Clinic (Surgery) will also give a free consultation -- they are generally pro-surgery and have treated more ANs than I think anywhere else, bar none. The best treatment of ANs is a subject of debate among neurosurgeons, so at the end of the day, it will be up to you to decide whether surgery or radiaotherapy is the way to go. Be prepared to receive conflicting advice and to witness first hand that doctors have personal biases. The good news is your is small enough that all options are available to you. I'm 35 and had CK done on a much larger tumor (2.5 cm) in August. I was pretty comfortable that tumor control rates were essentially equivalent (in the mid to high 90s) among the treatment options (CK, GK, surgery). For me, the two principle factors that tipped the scale were hearing preservation (I still have very good hearing in my tumor-side ear -- go figure) and avoiding the risks of facial nerve damage. I also had a general aversion to the concept of surgery but that is just personal to me. I am glad to talk more if you want -- just email me directly.
Best,
Francesco
