Acoustic Neuroma

Four M.R.I.s later, I understand that while it is not a diagnosis anyone wants, as far as brain tumors go, mine is as good as it gets - Adrienne Brodeur

Acoustic Neuroma
Acoustic Neuroma

image by: Dazdraperma

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Despite the Losses, So Much Gained

Dude was a doctor who wanted to leave medicine. We met almost 20 years ago, when he applied to a writing fellowship program at the movie studio where I was an executive.

When I called him with the good news, he jumped up and down and screamed into the phone. Then he told me he didn’t hear anything after the word “accepted.” “To me,” he said, “you just sound like an angel.”

No one had ever called me an angel before.

Months later, Dude moved to Los Angeles. In the beginning of our professional relationship, I would give him notes on his screenplays.

Our personal relationship happened later. I was a 26-year-old black woman from Georgia, and he was a New York Italian…

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 Despite the Losses, So Much Gained

I was found to have a 2.5-centimeter acoustic neuroma, a benign tumor of the nerve connecting the ear to the brain; it occurs in about 2 of every 100,000 people. Unbeknown to me, I had already experienced 50 percent hearing loss in my right ear, and my facial nerve had been engulfed by the tumor. Removing it would be difficult. Half of my face could become paralyzed. This was highly specialized surgery, and my doctor said I was blessed because the best surgeon was only 15 minutes away; he was the Michael Jordan of neurotology.

The 5 Most Important Questions to Ask an Acoustic Neuroma Specialist

A common symptom of an acoustic neuroma is single-sided hearing loss and/or ringing in your ear. However, other symptoms can be associated with this tumor include unsteadiness, dizziness, facial numbness or tingling. This complex tumor can often go undiagnosed for years as they typically grow at a slow rate of 1.0 mm annually. These tumors can have a significant impact on your quality of life and therefore understanding the diagnosis and treatment options is critical.

Acoustic Neuroma Association

ANA provides information and networking support for newly diagnosed acoustic neuroma patients.

BANA

Our Vision is a world in which Acoustic Neuroma is no longer a life-changing experience. Our Mission is to be a trusted, impartial and reliable source of information and support.

Me and My Acoustic Neuroma

The neurologist reassures me but arranges a scan. She phones MRI and they can fit me in straight away. I have my scan and realise, because they need a second scan with contrast, that they have found something in my head. I am a professional but in those few minutes become a worried patient. I think the worst: what type of brain tumour, how large and where is it?

Schwannoma Survivors & Schwannoma Fighters

Schwannoma Survivors & Schwannoma Fighters is a public facebook page which assists those battling Schwannomas. Please post only that which you are comfortable sharing.

Vestibular.org

As an alternative to conventional surgical techniques, radiosurgery with a gamma knife or linear accelerator may be employed to reduce the size or limit the growth of the tumor.

The Brain Tumour Society

Acoustic neuroma (also known as a vestibular schwannoma) is a low grade brain tumour accounting for 8% of all primary brain tumours. They tend to affect adults between the ages of 30 to 60. Vestibular schwannomas are slow growing and are rarely life threatening. This type of tumour grows along the eighth cranial nerve in the brain, also known as the acoustic or vestibulocochlear nerve.

MedlinePlus

Acoustic neuroma can be difficult to diagnose, because the symptoms are similar to those of middle ear problems. Ear exams, hearing tests, and scans can show if you have it. If the tumors affect both hearing nerves, it is often because of a genetic disorder called neurofibromatosis.

Microwave News

October 6, 2013 U.K. Acoustic Neuroma Link Fades Away The research group at the University of Oxford that reported a link between long-term use of a mobile phone and an elevated risk of acoustic neuroma (AN) in May now says that it is no longer there. In a short letter to the International Journal of Epidemiology (IJE), the Oxford team advises that when the analysis was repeated with data from 2009-2011, "there is no longer a significant...

NORD

An acoustic neuroma, also known as a vestibular schwannoma, is a rare benign (non-cancerous) growth that develops on the eighth cranial nerve. This nerve runs from the inner ear to the brain and is responsible for hearing and balance (equilibrium). Although there is no standard or typical pattern of symptom development, hearing loss in one ear (unilateral) is the initial symptom in approximately 90 percent of affected individuals.

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