Be afraid of the surgery if you wish but if it is necessary then do it! The surgery itself is no worse than any other but the down time after is really a pain in the ass. I cannot chew a piece of steak on the right side of my mouth and my reading of putts is awful. I am getting better but it is a slow process. I am 81 yrs old and the meningioma was about 7cm. Medications (Keppra) that you must take for a while is horrible, but life goes on and that is the good part.

Robin, very sorry to hear of your situation. In May 2018, at age 67, after having 3 seizures during the preceding 6 months, I was diagnosed with a 6 cm meningioma in my right forehead area. It was described as being the size of a tangerine! I was immediately referred to a neurosurgeon and not offered the “wait and see” option. I was very fortunate to not have had other symptoms, which I was told could be significant and some could be possibly be irreversible. Surgery was scheduled for and occurred in August 2018 at Oregon Health Sciences University (OHSU) in Portland, OR. While everyone is different, based on my experience, I would not dread the craniotomy surgery if I had to do it again. I had an excellent surgical team, an experienced neurosurgeon, and terrific post surgery care, things I would research a lot if I had to do it again. I should think that the Mayo Clinic would be a great choice, as was OHSU for me. Having the surgery was helpful to me to get that thing out of my head and not have to worry about it anymore, although unfortunately, a small part that was closely associated with my right optical nerve, was left in place so as to not compromise vision in that eye, a decision by the surgical team for which I am grateful. That has placed me into a “wait and see” situation to see if the remnant stars growing again. Successive MRI’s since surgery have shown it to be stable, which is great. My thought for you is, if the surgery becomes recommended, be strong, do your research in choosing your surgeon and hospital facility, and get it done. I understand the fears you face, as I faced them, too, but it could be worse by not doing anything when/if your doctors recommend removal. I wish you the very best.

I am 64 and was diagnosed 13 years ago with meningioma that started gum ball size and is now golf sized. I have no symptoms. I have been able to become comfortable with active surveillance over the years but was initially very upset and frightened. In my case it has been possible to live a normal life for years after diagnosis.

Hi there..I feel ya..I just found out I have 2 undergo cranial surgery..after wat they thought was just a bump on my head..after MRI they found 3 meningenoma in my head. They have 2 cut most of my front skull to take 1 out ..and replace it with a plate...not looking forward to that..apparently the radiation I had as a kid from cancer is the cause of these meningenoma I have 41hrs later..go figure