A close friend of the family (and wife of frequent BIC reader) has been diagnosed with Acoustic Neuroma. It's a benign tumor attatched to the acoustic nerve, at the base of the Brain Stem. A scary thing, to be sure. It's a bit of relief, as worse was feared. But still a huge deal.

It's not likely to be fatal. And surgery is highly succesful at removing the tumor. But not without a high risk of post-operative complications. Partial or complete loss of hearing in the affected ear, as well as the risks associated with any surgery (infection, namely). There is also, depending ont he exact surgical method they choose, a low risk of brain damage.

Brain tumors in general just worry the hell out of me. My Grandfather died from one. Nicholas, of course, whose ordeal I still cannot recall without tears filling my eyes. But those were both anything but benign.

For a not so pretty look at a removal of benign tumor (not one like my friend has), there is this awesome photo gallery on Flickr.