"My Sore Throat Turned Out to be a Brain Tumor: Girl, 19, Describes Shock Diagnosis that Required Innovative New Surgical Technique to Remove the Lump" - Mary Kekatos
For years, Christina Giuffrida had been experiencing an on-again, off-again sore throat. It turned out the teenager had a benign tumor that was resting on the back of her brain and pressing on the nerves that controlled her swallowing, hearing and balance. Giuffrida was referred to Constantinos Hadjipanayis, MD, PhD, director of neurosurgical oncology at the Mount Sinai Health System. According to Dr. Hadjipanayis, “You can lose hearing, have swallowing problems and even become paralyzed.” During a six-hour surgery, Dr Hadjipanayis resected 100 percent of Giuffrida's tumor.
'”We were able to get it off of her hearing nerve, the nerves that control her face, and the nerves that allow her to swallow and speak.”
— Constantinos G. Hadjipanayis, MD, PhD, Professor, Neurosurgery, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Site Chair, Department of Neurosurgery, Mount Sinai Downtown Union Square, Director, Brain Tumor Nanotechnology Laboratory, The Tisch Cancer Institute, Director, Neurosurgical Oncology, Mount Sinai Health System
Additional coverage: The New York Post