PATIENT STORY: Endocrine-Inactive Pituitary Macroadenoma

All In A Day’s Work

In July 2015, Brent B. noticed that he was losing his peripheral vision and made an appointment with an ophthalmologist. After a battery of tests, his doctor determined that he should see a neuro-ophthalmologist. He found that Brent had damage to a portion of his optic nerve and an MRI was recommended as soon as he received insurance authorization.

Here is Brent’s story:

“My MRI was July 29th and the report and disc of the MRI was couriered over to my neuro-ophthalmologist on July 31st. The doctor called me that same afternoon with the diagnosis of a large enhancing pituitary tumor (endocrine-inactive pituitary macroadenoma) and told me that I should call Dr. Daniel Kelly’s office immediately. He told me that he and Dr. Kelly had discussed my case and that they were expecting my call. The nurse who took my call requested that I come in even though it was 2:30pm on a Friday afternoon.

My wife and I drove to Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica and got there around 4:40pm where Dr. Kelly and his team greeted us. He explained the procedure and the urgency for the operation. The surgery that Friday began at 8:30pm and lasted 4 ½ hours and I was in recovery by 1am on Saturday morning. It is still unbelievable to me that Dr. Kelly put together a team in just a few hours on a Friday night.

What is really remarkable is that, as I learned later, Dr. Kelly was to be a speaker at a conference in Mexico City that Saturday morning, but he felt that this surgery could not wait and he decided to operate immediately. I also learned that a tumor of that size could put enough pressure on the optic nerve to render me totally blind at any time, and if the tumor has bled as tumors of that size can, it would have been worse.

I would like to thank Dr. Daniel Kelly and his exceptional team including Dr. Kian Karimi who was the ENT surgeon, the anesthesiologist and the many nurses and other caregivers at Saint John’s who assisted in my surgery.

My hospital stay was very brief lasting less than two days and I was told to rest for the first week after surgery. I was able to be driven to work and participate in projects on the second week and was fully recovered and back to normal at week three.

I truly believe that I owe my eyesight and very possibly more to Dr. Kelly and his exceptional team.”