MICHAEL CASSARO M . D . EFFECTIVELY TREATS ALL CHRONIC PAIN CONDITIONS
A STORY OF LIFE
and continued to build up my strength .
IN THE FOLLOWING YEAR , I found a doctor who took a nerve from my tongue and plugged it into the seventh cranial nerve spot in hopes that I would regain animation in my face , which would also allow me to close my eye so that it wouldn ’ t dry out , which might result in completely losing the eye . There was no guarantee that it would work , but it was a risk I was willing to take . The surgery helped restore some symmetry to my mouth and allowed me to close my eye enough to keep it naturally lubricated so I wouldn ’ t lose it , but I still had no control over movement of the left side of my face . The lasting effects are similar to having a permanent case of Bell ’ s Palsy .
In July 2001 , I started having vision problems accompanied with headaches . I went to the eye doctor to see if I needed new glasses and through a routine eye exam , he saw a tumor and immediately called my neurosurgeon . Within the hour , I found myself in a MRI machine where it was confirmed that the tumor had grown back .
The doctor said that within three years the tumor had already grown back to the size it was when he originally diagnosed me . This time , he said , we must remove 100 percent of the tumor and being a quadriplegic was a very real possibility . And there was a high chance I would not survive the surgery .
I had a lot to think about and a decision to make . I decided I would not subject my loved ones to watching me go through surgery again and possibly taking care of me for the rest of my life . I would just continue living my life until God called me home . My family could grieve and then move on with their lives without the burden of caring for me . I know they wouldn ’ t hesitate to care for me , but it ’ s not fair to them , so I decided against surgery and to just let fate take its course .
IN AUGUST 2001 , I found a doctor who was willing to try a surgery on me that was not commonly performed on brain tumors . It is called stereotactic radiosurgery , which is a noninvasive surgery that basically delivers a massive dose of radiation to destroy a tumor . It won ’ t remove the tumor , but the hopes are that the radiation damages the DNA of tumor cells enough so the tumor cells lose their ability to reproduce .
Because this surgery was not common with brain tumors , I had to sign papers saying my family couldn ’ t sue if I didn ’ t survive . Today , this surgery is fairly common .
Thus far , the surgery has been a success . I have not had any complications , although there remains a spot on my brain that I have monitored about every two years .
Since the last surgery , my life has changed in many ways .
I ’ ve dealt with – and internally overcome – my physical handicaps . I hated my half smile and would not allow anyone photograph me . I couldn ’ t go watch my friends play softball because it killed me to not be able to get out there and compete with them .
Yet , now , I ’ ve come to terms with who I am and accepted me for me . I ’ m still the same person on the inside . I had to cut a few people out of my life who couldn ’ t see through the outside , but I also gained quite a few friends who didn ’ t know me before my surgeries and physical changes . They accepted me for who I am and what I believe in .
MOST IMPORTANTLY , I met a woman who didn ’ t see any of my imperfections . She only saw me for who I am . She didn ’ t care about my money
CHRONIC PAIN RELIEF ... THE RIGHT WAY !
MICHAEL CASSARO M . D . EFFECTIVELY TREATS ALL CHRONIC PAIN CONDITIONS
• HEADACHES • PELVIC PAIN • BACK PAIN • FIBROMYALGIA • AND MORE
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