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Daniel F. Kelly MD & Sharmyn McGraw
September 22, 2016

Cushing’s Disease: What Happens When Your Whole Life Changes?

by Sharmyn McGraw

As I walked into my favorite health food market I noticed Laurie, one of my closest girlfriends, hurrying to catch up with me. Laurie took one look at me and gasped. My heart sank and tears welled up in my eyes. The expression on her...

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September 16, 2016

Traveling the Extra Mile: International Patient Stories (Part 2 of 2)

by Daniel F. Kelly

We welcome patients from around the globe and invite you to contact us. Here are a few of our patients who tell their stories. Information for International Patients Juan from Chile – Pituitary Adenoma:  Finding the diagnosis was the hardest part. It took me a year;...

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September 7, 2016

Acromegaly 101: Pituitary Patient Perspectives (Part 2 of 2)

by Sharmyn McGraw

As a patient advocate I work with many pituitary patient advocate organizations around the world.  Since my own pituitary surgery with Dr. Daniel Kelly over 16 years ago my passion has grown stronger. I’m still seeing too many patients showing acromegaly symptoms going far too long...

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June 15, 2016

PATIENT STORY: Endocrine-Inactive Pituitary Macroadenoma

by Amy Eisenberg

All In A Day’s Work In July 2015, Brent B. noticed that he was losing his peripheral vision and made an appointment with an ophthalmologist. After a battery of tests, his doctor determined that he should see a neuro-ophthalmologist. He found that Brent had damage to a portion of his optic nerve and an MRI...

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May 11, 2016

PATIENT STORY: Many Options to Treat CNS Lymphoma

by Zara Jethani

It was Winston Churchill who famously said, “Never give in—never, never never.” He could have been describing Rudolf Metzger and his Providence Saint John’s Health Center physician Santosh Kesari, MD, PhD. Metzger has confronted numerous obstacles over his 70 years. As a young immigrant from Austria,...

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March 16, 2016

PATIENT STORY: Seeing Clearly After Pituitary Adenoma Surgery

by Sharmyn McGraw

There is a pea-sized structure at the base of the brain called the pituitary gland. It doesn’t look like much and it could be easy to overlook, but don’t underestimate the power of the pituitary gland. Small, yet mighty, this “master endocrine gland” is part of the...

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February 15, 2016

Adapting to a Chronic Condition

by Sharmyn McGraw

by Guest Writer Dr. Patti Johnson It takes Two – You and Your Support Team A chronic condition is one that persists over time without an easily definable beginning, middle and end. After being diagnosed with a chronic condition, such as some types of brain...

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January 21, 2016

PATIENT STORY: A Tale of Two Cushing’s Surgeries

by Zara Jethani

Rae lives on a 9000 acre ranch in Northern California, is a wife, a mother of four teenagers and is in remission after the removal of pituitary tumors which caused her to develop Cushing’s Disease. Rae grew up as an Army brat and went to 22 countries before she was 20 years old. She says, “It...

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January 11, 2016

The Evolution of Awake Brain Surgery

by Zara Jethani

Canst thou not minister to a mind diseased, Pluck from the memory a rooted sorrow, Raze out the written troubles of the brain And with some sweet oblivious antidote Cleanse the stuffed bosom of that perilous stuff Which weighs upon the heart? – Shakespeare, Macbeth,...

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December 3, 2015

PATIENT STORY: My Pituitary Surgery was Truly a Team Approach

by Sharmyn McGraw

Gerald, a retired Neurologist, from Hawaii, developed a recurrent pituitary adenoma in December 2014. His success and experience with the Pacific Brain Tumor Center and Pituitary Disorders Program team have allowed him to go home back to his active lifestyle. *   *   *   *   *...

Last updated: October 11th, 2018