Is this a brain tumor symptom?

[max80862]

Hi Everyone,

Lately I've been having this dull feeling on the left side of my head. I have also been feeling depressed and get angry quite easily. Sometimes I feel very very angry, but I have had good control over myself. I went to see a neurologist and he did these silly tests where I would close one eye and he would ask me to follow his finger with the other. I think he did some other tests. But he did not send me to get a scan, so I wonder maybe if I didn't display any reason for him to ask me to get one.

I don't have any of the other symptoms, like dizzyness, Naseua Vomiting etc.

Please advise. This thing is really stressing me out.

[rumpled]

I am not sure why you posted this in a thread that did not discuss pituitary (or start a new one?) but I totally agree that experience in a surgeon and a facility leads to a much better outcome!

Personally I have not heard of an ENT doing pituitary surgeries - just neurosurgeons or skull base surgeons. ENTs can and do assist though.

Glad you are so much better. I guess meds were not an option?

[Pituitarytumor555]

I had a high growth hormone pituitary macro removed about a year and a half ago. Go to the UCSF pituitary clinic website and they explain the procedure in detail.The surgery went exactly how they explained it. I really feel going to the best hospitals in your state give you the better outcomes. I felt horrible before the surgery and was a patient at UC Davis where I live. UC Davis is great for cancer and research but when I received my second opinion at UCSF I could see the difference in experience between the two hospitals. I had to fight my HMO to get the surgery done at UCSF and am so happy with the results. Lots of ear nose and throat doctors say they can do the surgery but I have talked to so many patients where I live that have had so many problems afterwards. Check around before having the surgery. Lie if you have to. Feeling great now after years of horrible migraines, carpal tunnel, weakness , joint pain and depression.

[rumpled]

They are not silly tests. A tumor would impact the nerves and coordination and your reflexes so the doctor is looking for subtle signs of changes. So if you have all normal readings, odds are everything is okay.

Mood changes can be hormones, vitamin needs, or other just plain mood issues - in other words, there can be multiple issues. Your PCP should start by running baseline testing and go on from there.

Often though, one-sided headaches signal that there is a migraine issue. So that also may be a factor? Migraines are nasty, can persist and may not be painful but cause visual issues or strange symptoms. So, it may take a bit to really get at the cause.