Tumors Begone!!!

I just got back from my appt at Joslin Center for Diabetes (actually the Beetham Eye Institute located inside Joslin), which is right across the street from Brigham & Women's Hospital and our favorite food court (LOL). My appointment was with Dr Calderon who was very thorough and pleaseant. He explained each test, why he was doing it, and the results. He first looked at me and noticed that my left eye was a bit sunken in compaired to my right and that it also slightly went to the right when I was supposed to be looking straight ahead. After a number of tests he dialated my eyes and while we waited for the eyes to dialate he did the ophthalmic ultrasound. This was the easiest of all the tests and I became very relaxed at first. I sat in the chair slightly leaning back and he turned out the lights, explaining how the test was going to run. He had me close my eyes and then used the doppler with gel on my eyelids, moving it around in order to see various parts of my eye and having me look far right to see behind my right eye and far left to see behind my left. He saw the vitrial layer that detached in my right eye (permenant giant floating line in my eyesight) and then saw and measured my right optic nerve saying "nothing unusual, just a boring perfect nerve". He then changed to my left eye and after a few minutes he asked if my last MRI was before I had the problems I am now having with my eyesight. I said "no, I've been having the vision problems for 5 weeks and my last MRI was 3 weeks ago, with a CT scan done 4 weeks ago". He said "Hmmm", then nothing for quite awhile as he kept checking and rechecking behind my left eye. I heard him taking picture after picture and knew that he had found something. That is when I felt the first wave of panic/anxiety flash over me. Luckily this Dr liked to explain everything, so when he had finished with the ultrasound he showed me a few of the pictures and then showed me the tape he had made as he had done the ultrasound so I could see what he had found...another tumor! (ARGHHHHH!!!) This one he believes is deeper in the muscle then the one that was just removed and it is right up against the back of my eye and optic nerve, pressing into my eye and causing my problems. He showed it to me pretty well on the ultrasound machine and pointed out that it wasn't pulsating so it wasn't a vascular tumor such as a venous angioma or hemangioma. Basically he doesn't know what it is exactly, but "it shouldn't be there" as he said. I have copies of my right and left eye (showing the new tumor) and as soon as I can get my scanner to work I will post them so you all can see it. I left the office feeling nauseous and with lots of panic/anxiety setting in :-(

Dr Calderon is going to hand deliver the results himself to Dr Bien-Fang my NeuroOphthalmologist tomorrow and said that I would be needing another MRI soon so they can figure out what to so next. If this tumor wasn't seen on the last MRI then it means that it is growing fast...or it could have been missed because the other tumor was much bigger and this was further down in the muscle. I'm going to call Dr Black's office tomorrow to let them know about this new tumor and see what they say.

I think I'm almost in shock and I really just don't know what to think but I'm trying to take things one step at a time, it just feels like those steps get pretty steep at times (grin).


Sue