Patient Stories

Multi-level Lumbar Fusion for Chronic Low Back Pain: Larry’s Patient Story

Larry, a patient of mine, stands out for his interesting path to surgery and recovery, as well as his strength and perseverance. For many years, Larry suffered from severe chronic pain from multi-level lumbar arthritis, disk degeneration and stenosis, which involved all 5 levels of his lumbar spine. I got to know him toward the end of his story, when he traveled from his home town in Pittsburgh to have surgery with me in New York. The problems first began in 1998, when Larry experienced a herniated disc in the lumbar region. He underwent surgery to correct the issue, which worked to temporarily alleviate his leg pain. However, Larry’s neurosurgeon warned that if he remained active, it was likely he would need to undergo additional surgery, due to the degenerative condition of the other lumbar discs and the development of arthritis in his spine. Unfortunately, soon after his surgery, Larry began to encounter chronic back pain that increased in severity with every passing year. In the summer of 2013, his condition worsened to the point that he could not walk without severe back pain and shooting leg pain. Larry explains the pain as: “It came to the point where I could only walk very short distances and then I would have to sit down for a few minutes to

February 16, 2016

Disc Fusion Surgery: Karen’s Patient Experience

Karen, a former patient of mine, had been suffering from back pain for over 10 years before I met with her. As the years rolled on, Karen experienced muscle spasms and severe pain from degenerative discs. She had never had an injury and couldn’t pinpoint the problem. She worked on pain management with some physical therapy, but after a bit of weight gain, her situation wasn’t getting any better. In January of 2012, Karen joined a gym to try and get in better shape and build up her core strength. To her dismay, this only made her pain worse: “You know what you feel like when you’re sore from the gym? This was the opposite. The pain would go from feeling regular to ‘I can’t deal with this.’ It got to the point where I had to ask myself, ‘Do I want to just pop pills to make it go away, or do I want to take a risk and do something better for myself?’” Karen went to see a back specialist, who sent her for an MRI. When the results came back, she was given three options: Surgery, pain management, or physical therapy. The “gut punch,” as she likes

May 26, 2015

9+1: Derrek’s Patient Experience

Derrek is a patient of mine who has left a lasting impression – he recently ran his first half marathon after having a 2 level spinal fusion (see his xray to the left). He is a great example of patients who become more physically active after a spinal fusion than they were before, which is a common experience in our practice. Derrek’s back pain began eleven years before his surgery, when one day he woke up with terrible pain in his back. Over the course of the eleven years, after all else failed, his condition deteriorated to the point where he considered surgery. Failing to get the answers he was looking for after speaking to a doctor specializing in psychosomatic symptoms, Derrek came to my office. Here’s what he had to say about his experience: “Dr. McCance really did a great job explaining everything to me and my wife. He told us that surgery is what needs to happen now, or something much worse will happen later. “What I’m most impressed by is that Dr. McCance even explained the differences between psychosomatic therapy and surgery to my wife. He answered all of our questions and gave us two solid options.” Derrek’s options were

March 17, 2015

10 Years Later: James’ Patient Experience

Meet James, a former patient of mine. James’ story began when he was lifting paving stones and felt a sudden shooting pain in his back, eventually traveling to his legs and toes. Knowing something was wrong, he immediately consulted a physician, but doctor after doctor couldn’t figure it out. He had undergone prior surgery for a herniated disk about 15 years ago. After receiving five different opinions with no clear answer, James was left with more uncertainty: “Five different guys didn’t seem clear on where my problem was. They thought it was scar tissue from a previous surgery I had 15 years ago or a herniated disc. Three of the doctors consulted each other and thought some kind of implant would be best for me.” James continued to look for someone who could provide a better answer. He didn’t want rods put in his back. When a friend recommended my services, James did his research and made his appointment the next day. What I did differently from the previous doctors was to get a high quality MRI and special Xray views. Once I got the results back, I assured him that the pain was not due to scar tissue left

March 3, 2015

Back on the Dance Floor: Kathryn’s Patient Experience

Kathryn is a former patient of mine who has left a lasting impression. Her back pain began when she hurt her L3/L4 disc after a spinning class, and she believes she aggravated the injury during a subsequent game of golf. Initially, Kathryn told me she didn’t think too much of it because she’s athletic and used to pushing herself outside her comfort zone. Kathryn thought this was something she could deal with – so she sought a massage treatment, iced her lower back area, and rested. Afterwards, she continued to play golf and attend spinning class. Unfortunately, what Kathryn didn’t do was listen to her body and get help when she needed it. I see this in a lot of patients; a good rule of thumb is if the pain persists, starts to travel down your arm or leg, and/or keeps you up at night, it’s time to see a physician. Unfortunately, the pain took a turn for the worse when Kathryn further exacerbated her injury lifting a mattress while vacuuming. Kathryn contacted my office and met with me to discuss different options that would work for her injury. Because she had severe nerve compression in her lower back due

February 3, 2015

Patient Stories – Kathleen

It started about seven years ago. I had lower back pain and all of that, but I was always pretty active, so I didn’t pay much attention to it. I didn’t really think it was anything serious. When my son was home from military duty he said to me, “you know mom, you’re getting crooked.” It was two years later that I had my back X-rayed. They told me I had a curve—25 degrees at that time. I went to physical therapy and that helped for a while. It was the physical therapist who said it will either hold or it’s all going to tumble on you. It was the beginning of scoliosis—which I inherited from my dad. By the Spring of 2010 I was in agony. It was just awful. I couldn’t get straightened up. When I saw Dr. McCance he told me that I was at a 40 degree curve. Kathleen // Age: 66 Condition // Scoliosis Occupation // School Counselor (NY) How did you find Dr. McCance? I found Dr. McCance through a girlfriend who also had back surgery. She encouraged me to find him. I did see some doctors near home, but I just didn’t feel

September 27, 2012

Patient Stories – Gregory

My doctor said I needed to get the surgery because my spinal cord might get worse by the time I’m 25. My scoliosis was 65 degrees. Gregory // Age: 25 Condition // Scoliosis Occupation // Student (NY) How did you find Dr. McCance? My doctor referred me to two doctors—one was Dr. McCance. Why did you choose Dr. McCance for your surgery? When I went into his office for the first time I saw it was very modern. I saw that the New York Daily News had an article about him. I was really impressed. At first I was really scared. The doctor made me comfortable about getting the surgery. We talked about college and girls and he made me feel comfortable. How did you feel after your surgery? The day after surgery they told me to walk. At first it really hurt. But I kept walking and the more I did it the more I got used to it. I started college one month after surgery. I walked up the stairs, walked to class, and walked up the hills. How do you feel now? I’m doing kick boxing now—it requires a lot of movement and a lot of flexibility,

September 27, 2012

Patient Stories – Doug

In 2002, when I was in my early 50s, I had my first lumbar surgery. After that I was pain-free for 3 years or so. I had done the rehab as I was instructed and after eight months was told I could return to the gym. My original lumbar surgery was performed by a top- rated specialist at a world-class orthopedics hospital. The results were quite poor and degraded over time. They included a fusion failure at L5/S1, which I did not discover for several years. After the three years the pain returned and got worse and worse until I couldn’t walk. I couldn’t take pain pills because I had to work. By 2009 I’d had it. I saw two prospective surgeons and hadn’t made a decision. I just wasn’t sold on either of them. Doug // Age: 50+ Condition // Failed Fusion/Pseudoarthrosis Occupation // Attorney (NY) How did you find Dr. McCance? My best friend is a doctor and he recommended Dr. McCance to me. I went to see him and it was love at first sight. I was impressed with the design of his office. It was clear Dr. McCance recognized the importance of having a comfortable and

September 23, 2012

Patient Stories – Christopher

I knew for a long time that I had a mild scoliosis in my lumbar region, but I never had any symptoms. I was active. I did a lot of weight lifting, played rugby. About nine years ago I started having a little bit of pain. It wasn’t just acute, it was also chronic. I had it every day. The first surgeon I met with said I had the back of a 60 year old and tried to blame me for my condition. He was of no help and said he couldn’t do anything. Went to another back surgeon and he thought it was too big of an area to operate. He thought steroid injections might help. And they did help temporarily. But it kept getting worse and worse. Doing physical therapy, taking steroid injections and taking all the medicines that were available—none of that was working any more. I was even getting radio frequency to block the nerve, and that wasn’t working. When I moved to New York I saw three surgeons—who took MRIs— and they all said my back was too bad—they couldn’t do anything. My whole life revolved around my back. I was always worried about not

September 23, 2012

Patient Stories – Evangelia

I was coming home from Boston and had a car accident going 65 miles an hour. They wanted to do surgery in Boston because they said I broke my neck, but I just wanted to get home to New York. And I didn’t want to have surgery. The only thing I’ve ever had was stitches when I was twelve. And when you go online, all you see are these terrible stories and then you’re told you can die or get paralyzed, so I didn’t want to get surgery. Plus, young people like me, they don’t want surgery. When I got home the pain got terrible. It was so painful I couldn’t do anything. Evangelia // Age: 30 Condition // Broken Neck / Neck fracture Occupation // Manager (NY) How did you find Dr. McCance? I looked up a neurologist, stumbled into his office, and he ran some tests and referred me to Dr McCance. Why did you choose Dr. McCance for your spine surgery? Everyone told me to get a second opinion, that’s what you’re supposed to do, right? So I went for one and that doctor pressured me into getting surgery right away. It sounded like a hard sell

September 23, 2012

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