Naked Science Forum
Life Sciences => Physiology & Medicine => Topic started by: Ians Daddy on 13/11/2003 01:41:15
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I just found out that Tarek (AKA Jaramillo) is going under the knife on the 21st. He's always had migraines and never worried much about it. The migraines started progressively getting worse and he was getting dizzy. When he went to the doctor, they told him it was probably a sinus infection and not to worry about it. Then, he started getting nauseous and demanded something be looked at further. He said he could hear his pulse as if under water when he layed down. They did an MRI and found 2 large non-cancerous growths at the base of his skull on his brain. They said that if he hadn't followed his gut, it would have killed him in as little as 2 months. Does anyone know anything about this ailment (hemangioblastoma)and the procedure to rid this? Tarek is the closest thing I've ever had to a brother and I'm very worried about him. He doesn't know much more than what the doctors are telling him and it's quite vague. I told him I'd relay anything that you all had to say about it. It may help to ease his mind, his mother's, his wife's and mine.
Thank you all in advance,
Ronnie
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Ron, Tarek is in California now isn't he? Are these growths big cysts? Tell him that I'm sending good energy to him. And that he can relax, his life's mission (posting yeti footprint photos on thenakedscientist website) is still in progress, so he will be doing time down here for a while yet.
Wish I had some info to share, but I'm sure Chris and Nancy have it covered.
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Oooooh, bad news, I'm sorry to hear. They are, however, non-cancerous and the prognosis is pretty good. If they're able to remove the tumors completely, the recurrence rate is low. If the tumor is on the brain stem, they might not be able to get all of it and follow with some type of radiation. What concerns me more than the tumors themselves is that there are two of them, which might indicate that he has Von Hippel-Lindau disease, which is a hereditary disorder that predisposes you to the development of malignant tumors of the eye, spine, kidney, and some other areas that I forget right now. The genetic workup needs to be done, and I guess a full body CAT scan would be in order.
There are different types of hemangiomas, and depending on the type and location, the prognosis is affected. They are, however, slow growing tumors. Sorry Ron, wish I had better news for you. It's not necessarily a death sentence, but it is serious. If you get more specific information, we'll have a better idea of how he'll fare out. THe next step should be the MRI, to get the specifics as to type and location. Keep me posted, and I'll keep him in my prayers.
Bezoar