How It All Began!

So there's this bump on my head. Right above my eyebrow on the left side. You can't see it until I point it out, but then you can't NOT see it.



This picture was taken more than a year ago and you can see the bump here, but again... just a bump. Otherwise, that is one HANDSOME man!

So I go see a family practice doc, who sends me to get an MRI, which leads to a CAT scan, which leads to a visit with an opthalmic surgeon. He looks at the images and sends me to see a head and neck surgeon who sends me to go see a neurosurgeon (all within a week of each other).

The consensus: I have a bump on my head. No one knows what it is. Everyone is fairly sure it is not a cancerous tumour, as it has not killed me yet. (This method of practicing medicine is my favorite: Since you are not dead right now, it can't be anything THAT bad!)

The diagnosis: intraosseus (inside the bone) mass (bump) of unknown origin whose margins extend into the frontal sinus, left orbital socket and up to the meninges of the frontal lobe of the brain. It is about the size and shape of a robin's egg.

In this MRI image you can see the mass in the upper right corner of the film, as a round object right next to the brain. The words "Brain MRI" are printed right across the top of it.

This one is a little tougher to see, but the mass can be seen growing down into the eye socket (the round dark mass is the eyeball). The bulging area by the letter A on the slide is the mass and you can see it presses into the orbital area.

The CT scans show a more defined image, but they don't come in images I can post.

The etiology: I have had the mass defined as a possible osteoma, osseus fibroma, atypical fibrous dysplasia, or bone hemangioma. The medical community, so far, is leaning towards bone hemangioma.

The treatment: excision. That's right. They are going to cut it out. And since the mass is in the bone, the bone comes out, too. I am going to have a sizable piece of bone removed from my face.

So, remove the mass, rebuild the face. I ask around. Kansas City does not have an excellent reputation in the face rebuilding department. I keep asking. I found a place in Dallas referred to me by a friend, Cheryl (thanks Cheryl). I drove to Dallas with my wife, Melissa, and met a craniofacial surgeon and a neurosurgeon and had another CT scan. They don't know what it is, either. But they have MUCH more experience removing AND rebuilding skull material.

We scheduled the surgery for January 8th, 2010 and will be driving down to Dallas on January 4th, 2010 to be available for pre-surgery testing. We will be down there for about 3 weeks and I will do my best to keep this blog updated with as much information as I can.

For you readers, if you have any questions, comment on my blog and I will try to answer them as best I can. Have a wonderful Christmas and/or Hannukah!