Contents: General | IMRT | Immune System | CFS/FMS
DISCLAIMER: I have been studying treatment options for my acoustic neuroma and decided to make a web page of certain research papers and links which are of special interest to me, like IMRT. I'm happy to share what I've learned with you. I've added a section on the immune system; and I also included some CFS/FMS links. A smiley face denotes my favorites. The articles on this website are intended for informational purposes only and are not intended to replace the attention or advice of a physician or other health-care professional. My comments, where offered, are my personal opinion, based upon my personal experience and my personal research, with no malice intended. I have not updated my AN site recently (except to accommodate attorney Malcolm Harris and to link to Dr. Williams' obituary). I have other health problems and just haven't been up to the task. Also, my tumor has not grown recently which means I have the luxury of being a "wait and watcher" while treatment technology improves. At this point, I still favor radiation treatment. The nerve-sparing advances in radiation which are helping people with prostate cancer are also helping people with acoustic neuromas.

Check these links:
Johns Hopkins     Obituary Dr. Jeffrey Williams      Dr. Gil Lederman, MD
New PubMed      AN Patients' Archive      Val's AN
 
Note:
At one time I had posted two letters on my website from a Seattle neurosurgeon with whom I had had several appointments. I've talked to others on the AN Newsgroup who liked this doctor and were happy with their treatment. But I was not and had indicated why on an annotated copy of his letters which I had posted on this website. Being able to share my opinion, also known as the right of free speech, is protected by the First Amendment; but I was bullied by this doctor's attorney to remove the letters.    Here are the attorney's letter and my reply. Please note that my reply provided 5 pages of justification as to why I believe as I do, and malice was not on the list. I noticed yesterday [9/18/02] that this neurosurgeon has a website with information on radiation treatment for acoustic neuromas. I caution you to get your information regarding radiation treatment of acoustic neuromas from a radiation oncologist with experience in this field, not a neurosurgeon. There several kinds of radiation available, just as there are several surgical approaches, and there are different protocols regarding regarding how much radiation would be used. My hope is that you will be fully and accurately informed when you make your treatment decision. Please do not let my experience with Mr. Harris stop you from commenting on the newsgroup.

 

  1. My medical evaluation in rich text format (*.rtf). This is a good primer on acoustic neuromas and contains some of the results from the 1999 ANA survey too. click
     
  2. My letter about post-treatment statistics on radiation side effects click
    (contains info from one of Dr. Williams' recent research papers)
     
  3. Radiological units--what's a rad, what's a gray? click
     
  4. 1998 ANA Member Survey click   
     
  5. Johns Hopkins What's New click
     
  6. Acoustic neuromas must be removed surgically (misleading title) click
    A must read for the critical thinker!   
     
  7. A news release about CyberKnife click
    with a side comment from me about Regence/BlueShield (Boeing Traditional Medical Insurance)
    Dr. Williams information about CyberKnife click
     
  8. Acoustic neuromas potential benefits of fractionated stereotactic radiosurgery click
     
  9. Acoustic tumor growth: implications for treatment choices click
     
  10. Assessment of internal auditory canal tumors: a comparison of contrast-enhanced T1-weighted and steady-state T2-weights gradient-echo MRI click
     
  11. Audiological assessment before and after fractionated stereotactic irradiation for vestibular schwannomaA click
     
  12. Can hearing improve after acoustic tumor radiosurgery? click  
     
  13. Comparison between observation policy and fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy (SRT) as an initial management for vestibular schwannoma click  
     
  14. Comparison of intensity-modulated tomotherapy (IMRT) with stereotactically guided conformal radiotherapy for brain tumors click
     
  15. Complications of the translabyrinthine approach for the removal of acoustic neuromas click
     
  16. Decrease in cranial nerve complications after radiosurgery for acoustic neuromas: a prospective study of dose and volume click
     
  17. Dose reduction improves heaing preservation rates after intracanalicular acoustic tumor radiosurgery click
     
  18. The growth of acoustic neuromas in volumetric radiologic assessment click  
     
  19. Hearing impairment in patients with acoustic neuroma--analysis by electro cochleography click
     
  20. The learning curve in vestibular schwannomas surgery click
     
  21. Long-term outcomes after radiosurgery for acoustic neuromas click  
     
  22. Ocular complications of acoustic neuromas surgery click
     
  23. Prognostic factors for hearing preservation following observation-only verses stereotactic irradiation (STI) in patients with acoustic neuromas click  
     
  24. Preservation of hearing in acoustic neuromas treated by gamma knife surgery click
     
  25. Quality of hearing preservation in acoustic neuroma surgery click  
     
  26. Radiation therapy for benign central nervous system disease click  
     
  27. Radiologic surveillance of acoustic neuromas click  
     
  28. The risk of hearing loss in nongrowing, conservatively managed acoustic neuromas click  
     
  29. Small Acoustic Neuromas: Monitoring the Growth Rate by MRI. click
     
  30. Stereotactic radiosurgery for acoustic neuromas: a Candaian perspective click
     
  31. Stereotactic radiosurgery in the management of acoustic neuromas (see conclusion regarding hearing preservation) click  
     
  32. Stereotactic radiosurgery toxicity in the treatment of intracanalicular acoustic neuromas: the Seattle Northwest gamma knfe experience (has some pretty scray statistics about the risks of GammaKnife) click
     
  33. Vestibular schwannoma management - Part I click
     
  34. Vestibular schwannoma management - Part II click
     

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Research papers regarding Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT):

  1. IMRT information from NOMOS click
     
  2. IMRT information from Varian click
     
  3. The American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO) is the largest radiation oncology society in the world, with more than 5,000 members. As a leading organization in radiation oncology, biology and physics, the society's goals are to advance the scientific base of radiation therapy and to extend the benefits of radiation therapy to those with cancer. LINK to URL regarding last meeting. Abstracts and additional information about the meeting are online at www.astro.org or can be obtained by calling Keri Sperry at (703) 227-0156.
     
  4. Intensity-modulated radiation therapy: dynamic MLC (DMLC) therapy, multisegment therapy and tomotherapy. An example of QA in DMLC therapy click
     
  5. Clinical and financial issues for intensity-modulated radiation therapy delivery click
     
  6. Intensity-modulated radiotherapy: first results with this new technology on neoplasms of the head and neck click
     
  7. Comparison of three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy and intensity-modulated radiation therapy systems click
     
  8. Current status and future prospects of 3D treatment planning in radiation therapy, focusing on IMRT click
     
  9. Comparison of intensity-modulated tomotherapy with steroeotactially guided conformal radiotherapy for brain tumors click
     
  10. Optimization and clinical use of multisegment intensity-modulated radiation therapy for high-dose conformal therapy click
     
  11. Optimized planning using physical objectives and constraints click
     
  12. A non-invasive immobilization system and related quality assurance for dynamic intensity modulated radiation therapy of intracranial and head and neck disease click
     
  13. Dr. Williams' e-mail to me about total radiation dose verses tumor size (posted 02/27/00) click
     

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Information regarding vitamins and supplements which could be relevant to the immune system status of AN patients:

  1. FDA verses Lane Labs click
    Please make your opinion known, this action by the FDA is a waste of our tax dollars.
     
  2. Shark cartillage research abstracts   click
    William Lane PhD, Nutritional Oncology Adjuvant Therapy, 4th Annual Congress, Oct 1998
     
  3. Adjunctive Nutrition and Phytotherapy in Primary Malignant Brain Tumors  click   
    One of the most intriguing research papers I've found!
    (You can order the International Journal of Integrative Medicine by calling 1-800-477-2995.)
     
  4. Saliva hormone testing   click
     
  5. The FDA's plan to destroy Internet health sites and what YOU can do to stop this constitutional travesty (posted 02/26/00)   click
     
  6. Nutrients and Cancer (posted 05/01/00)   click   
    Just the references alone are enough to make one question why any doctor would say antioxidants are bad for people taking chemo or radiation treatments!
    (You can order the International Journal of Integrative Medicine by calling 1-800-477-2995.)
     
  7. Electrolytes (posted 05/04/00)   click
     
  8. Hydrazine Sulphate (posted 06/12/00)   Article1   |   Article2
     

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CFS/FMS research:

  1. A case of severe chronic active infection with Epstein-Barr virus: immunologic deficiencies associated with a lytic virus strain click
     
  2. Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of fluoxetine (Prozac) in chronic fatigue syndrome click
     

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File: AN_research/mylist.html

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