Should my mother goes for second surgeory?

Hi,

My mother's GBM diagnosed last year august.After her first surgery she goes through 30 days radiation plan along with her temo.Now unfortunately the bloody tumor comes back with the same size as it was last operated.The doc wants to remove it and also want to place a shunt so that her hydrocapulas problem can also be resolved.I am scared of this surgery,having nightmares that i might lost my mother or might she could have any kind of paralysis.

suggetions please :''(

Rabeya, I'm so sorry to hear your mother's gbm has returned. We had a gbm recurrence in September and had the surgery and the tumor has so far not returned. The surgery itself usually does not carry a high risk of death. You should talk to the surgeon and get an understanding from him/her about what the probable risks and benefits of this surgery are.

Thanks alot for the prompt reply :) appreciate!

Oh boy, it`s always such a huge decision in deciding on a second surgery. May I ask how old your mum is??  Has she suffered any loss of movement in her limbs and last of all, how is her memory function? My sister never recovered from her second surgery but in her case the tumors were voracious or "angry" as her NO called them. However, it seems that the majority of folks who have decided on a second one end up doing quite well...

Good luck with the decision :-)

Adonna...sister of Marilyn..dx GBM 7/27/09 passed 12/21/09

Well my mother is 58 years old.By the grace of GOD she is good with her limbs and there is no observable memory changes yet. The over all shivering of limbs is because of the drugs side effects. I was scared in the first surgery as well. But the risk rate is higher in the second one. Unfortunately we also can't ignore the growth of tumor. It's just a gambling. We can't improve the quality of life with surgery and we can't ignore the surgery.

My sister recovered very quickly from the second surgery...It was the remaining tumor and how quickly it grew back....She just didn`t have time to recover..Your mom is young and being of sound mind is probably in favor of the surgery??

There could be an improvement as far as quality of life....I have read many posts concerning that...I`m so sorry, it`s a tough one...

Adonna

It's my belief that if the doctors think the second surgery would be beneficial, she should probably have the surgery. However, you do need to talk to them and get your concern addressed: How will it help and how much risk is there.

A very tough choice with so much at risk which you have identified.  I will only say that the one common denominator I have seen with long term GBM survivors is that they have gotten the tumor out surgically.  Whether it was one surgery or a surgery for each recurrence, getting the tumor out seems to provide the best outcome relative to the cancer.  As you are well aware however, there are certainly risks associated with brain surgery that need to be considered.  While it is rare to lose a life on the operating table, many patients do come out of surgery with cognitive or motor impairments depending upon the tumor location.

I'm 54 years old with my first GBM completely removed Jan. of 2011. Just recently I had pains and numbness in my hips and thighs. There is now a new tumor right against the brain's liquid flow up from the spine. I'll probably have Avastin for awhile; maybe something else. No news yet. I'm devasted. 

How does your mom feel about another surgery, I think that is the most important perspective. Quality of life and survival improve with surgery, but the trauma of surgery may not be worth it. I know my wife said that her second was her last. Short term the recovery was much more difficult the second time, over time she did much better.