In July 2009 I had a brain tumor removed. Neurosurgeon said it was probably caused by radiation I had gotten when I had leukemia as a child. It was a major scare for us all, b/c initially NS said it was prob. cancer & may require chemo & more radiation (duh? what caused it in the first place?) Turned out not to be CA. Wasn’t even brain tissue. When neurosurgeon removed it, it wasn’t even attached, except to one (smelling) nerve.

NS was dumbfounded at the # of people at the hospital the day of surgery. He sent me home 48 hrs after surgery. Initially said I’d be in 4-7 days min. I had NO swelling & only 2 tiny little bruises. Said he’d never had a patient that wasn’t so swollen & bruised they couldn’t see. When all was said & done he stood at foot of my hospital bed the day after surgery & just stared at me.

WOW GOD IS SOOOOOO GOOD!

Initially I’d put off going to dr b/c I KNEW it was an ear infection (dizzy when I changed positions, etc). Finally went to dr. & to get med for ear inf. Dr said there’s nothing wrong w/ your ears. I was insistent, so she pretty well said, when this doesn’t work, go to an ear dr. Needless to say it didn’t, & I put off going again, b/c I was sure it was my ears & would clear on its own.

After talking to dad (a PA in neuro at VA), he told me of relatives that have recurring tiny ear tumors that in one led to seizures. So I gave in – dizziness I could deal with; seizures was another story.

Went to ENT, & he also said there’s nothing wrong w/ your ears. He decided to do hearing test, & found a little hearing loss, but no cause so he ordered an MRI.

I went the next Tuesday for the MRI, & by that same afternoon the dr’s office called w/an appt for following afternoon to come in & get results. I thought, no big deal, Andrew (husband) can meet me there & get boys & take them to church & I’ll just come when I get done. So he met me there, & I went to appt alone.

DR: Well, we found a mass.

I thought: Well duh? I know that.

I a-matter-of-factly: Ok, how big?

DR: ??mm x ??mm.

I don’t speak metric, so

ME: How big is that? (thinking, maybe the size of a pea – tiny)

DR: Bout the size of a lemon.

I thought: Well, that’s probably NOT in my ear.

So,

ME: Where?

DR: In the left frontal lobe of your brain, pressing on the back of your eye.

Still not shaken,

ME: Ok then, what now?

He told me they’d made an appointment for me w/a neurosurgeon to schedule surgery.