As she aged, Meghan Russell’s eyesight was aging, too. Or so she thought.
Although her eyesight had been poor for years, it was when she failed the vision exam while to renew her driver’s license that she realized just how bad it had gotten.
“I scraped by with the left eye being 20-40, but my right eye was 20-400,” she recalled. “I didn’t know that was possible!”
Meghan went to her eye doctor who referred her to a retinal specialist. She was diagnosed with a macular hole and had surgery. However, it didn’t significantly help.
More tests. More procedures. More specialists. Nothing was giving Meghan the ability to see clearly.
She was then referred to a neuro ophthalmologist who ordered an MRI. Upon coming out of the dressing room after the test at Mercy Health – St. Vincent Medical Center, she was referred immediately to the emergency room.
“I went to the ER at St. Vincent and had more tests,” she shares. “I was diagnosed with a brain tumor the size of a navel orange.”
Sean Xin, DO, one of our neurosurgeons, explains, “what she had was something called a giant olfactory groove meningioma. So typically, they’re large. But Meghan’s was giant. Anything bigger than five centimeters is considered giant.”
The tumor was thankfully benign, but it had been growing slowly over a course of many years.
“That part of the brain was putting pressure on the optic nerve, which is why she was blind,” Dr. Xin adds.
Dr. Xin and our team conducted a 13-hour surgery to remove Meghan’s tumor.
He explains that the length of time was determined by the complexity of the case. To ensure that Meghan didn’t experience loss of smell or damage to her brain, Dr. Xin and his team removed the tumor during one surgery rather than splitting it into two.
“It was a challenge, and I knew it was going to be a tough case,” Dr. Xin shares. “But at the same time, I was excited to help her. She was blind from the tumor, and I knew what we could get her, and I was excited for that outcome.”
Upon recovery, Meghan had something she hadn’t experienced in a long time – the ability to read the clock across the hall from her hospital room.
Soon after the surgery, Meghan got her eyes checked again, her right eye was 20-50! Her vision continues to fluctuate (between 20-40 and 20-80) and is expected over the first year after surgery. But Meghan says she feels great and is looking forward to getting back to driving.
In the meantime, it’s the small improvements that she relishes – reading the menu by herself when going out to dinner or enjoying the Cher memoir that she received from her daughter as a Christmas gift.
And she is currently reviewing continuing education courses with the goal of one day returning to her career as an occupational therapist.
And for the holidays, Meghan received the best gift possible – a follow up MRI that showed no tumor remaining.
“The tumor was gone!” she says, adding that she will continue to have MRIs in the months and years to come to ensure that there is no regrowth.
Meghan adds that she is so thankful for the many people who helped her on her journey, especially her family, friends and her new friends at Mercy Health – St. Vincent Medical Center.
“I encountered so many wonderful people from dietary, housekeeping, transport, the doctors, the lab techs, MRI and CT techs, the physical therapist and occupational therapist and especially the wonderful nurses who were there for me day and night. I’m eternally grateful to everyone!”
Learn more about the neurology services we provide at Mercy Health.Looking for a health care provider near you? Learn more about our primary care services, too
