Center for Cranial Base Surgery
John P. Leonetti,
MD, Co-Director
The first of its kind in the Midwest, the Center for Cranial Base Surgery was established in 1988 to treat patients suffering from various neoplastic and vascular lesions of the head and neck using the latest contemporary diagnostic methods, surgical techniques and therapeutic modalities.
Because of the anatomical intricacies of this vital area and the proximity or involvement with the brain itself, removal of both benign and malignant tumors is highly complex and difficult, sometimes requiring several hours of surgery. But a comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach of the Center's physicians and support staff allows the safe, compete removal of cranial tumors and lesions which might otherwise have been considered inoperable, and has resulted in an extremely high success rate.
State-of-the-art neuroradiology, intraoperative microscopic and laser techniques, and a fully-equipped speech and swallowing laboratory are available to treat patients. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) provides a precise mapping of advanced tumors prior to surgery, while elective angiographic embolization of vascular growths dramatically decreases the amount of intra-operative blood loss. The Neurophysiology Laboratories at Loyola offer the clinician and patient sophisticated testing methods to detect dysfunctions the nervous system.
Current skull base surgery demands a team effort from surgical disciplines - traditional head and neck surgery, neurosurgery and microscopic ear surgery - as well as highly perfected neuroanesthetic techniques. Four full-time anesthesiologists are dedicated to work with the Center. Intraoperative monitoring of the motor cranial nerves and innovative techniques developed at Loyola to preserve hearing optimize overall patient results and minimize patient morbidity.
Approximately two-thirds of the patients treated at Loyola's Cranial Base Surgery Center suffer from benign tumors that require only surgery; most of the patients with malignant lesions require either additional radiation therapy or radiation with chemotherapy.
Patients who suffer from acoustic neuromas, or noncancerous growths, that can cause deafness and, ultimately, death, make up a significant part of the Center's case load. An estimated 2,000-3,000 new cases of unilateral acoustic neuroma are diagnosed in the U.S. each year.
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