Hi,I am Dr. Shanthi.E (General & Family Physician). I will be looking into your question and guiding you through the process. Please write your question below.
Is Surgical Treatment For Parapharyngeal Space Tumour Advisable?
This is all very new to me so I hope I m doing this right but I m just looking for some reassurance. I m 26 years old and was diagnosed with a parapharyngeal space tumour in late 2012. 2013 my surgeon attempted to remove the tumor by cutting my jaw and going through the back of my throat into the pps, unfortunately he was unsuccessful and didn t remove any of the tumor. We decided to monitor it over two years and see if a change in growth was noted. I should mention that for the last 4 years I ve had pain in my left ear and face which has been gradually worsening, and around 10months ago I lost hearing in the same ear which is now joined by a high pitched ringing. A mri in early December 2015 showed a growth in tumor so my surgeon decided to remove it, however he would need to take a wider approach to ensure he would get the tumor this time, he is concerned that it s involved with my lower cranial nerves so we may need to remove or damage them which would greatly alter my quality of life. Currently I m looking at other options or other ENT over the world for more opinions and alternative treatments. They are unsure the nature of my tumor. Is there another surgical approach for this tumor and what is the best way to get a second opinion in america since iam in NZ
I can understand your concern. The protocol for this kind of tumor will be similar worldwide. You will have to let the surgeon remove the tumor with the wider approach. It is true that while doing the procedure, some cranial nerves may get damaged and may impair quality of life. However, if the tumor is kept inside for that concern, it might grow and compromise the function of cranial nerves anyways while compromising the quality of life in the same way. So surgery or no surgery cannot change that.
In addition, the nature of the tumor is confirmed only after biopsy and histopathological examination of the tumor as the investigations like x-ray, CT Scan, MRI etc will show the size of the tumor and involvement of the area and many tumors will present with the similar findings in spite of their being different in nature.
I hope this information helps you. Thank you for choosing HCM. Let me know if you need further information.
Best, Dr. Viraj Shah
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Is Surgical Treatment For Parapharyngeal Space Tumour Advisable?
Hello, I can understand your concern. The protocol for this kind of tumor will be similar worldwide. You will have to let the surgeon remove the tumor with the wider approach. It is true that while doing the procedure, some cranial nerves may get damaged and may impair quality of life. However, if the tumor is kept inside for that concern, it might grow and compromise the function of cranial nerves anyways while compromising the quality of life in the same way. So surgery or no surgery cannot change that. In addition, the nature of the tumor is confirmed only after biopsy and histopathological examination of the tumor as the investigations like x-ray, CT Scan, MRI etc will show the size of the tumor and involvement of the area and many tumors will present with the similar findings in spite of their being different in nature. I hope this information helps you. Thank you for choosing HCM. Let me know if you need further information. Best, Dr. Viraj Shah