Sandra Swartzendruber

In 1996 Sandra was diagnosed with a benign tumor in her spinal column. She underwent surgery to remove the tumor and had a great recovery. Jump  ahead to 2009 and signs of the tumor returning started to occur.  Sandra again underwent surgery to remove  the tumor, however this time the surgery did not come out quite as successful. During the surgery the spinal cord was slightly damaged resulting in temporary paralysis in her right leg and the need for her to learn how to walk again. After a long recovery, Sandra was able to walk again but never regained all the abilities she had prior to the second surgery. 


So now we come to today. Over the last year and more specifically the last few months, Sandra has been experiencing significant issues with her balance as well as burning pain in her legs.  Once again MRIs were completed and now it has been discovered that she has a tethered spinal cord in her thoracic region of her back where the previous two surgeries were conducted, as well as a tethered spinal cord in the lumbar region as well.  A tethered spinal cord is when the spinal cord is basically stuck to the to the side of the covering of the spinal cord called the Dura.   Tethered spinal cords usually are found in children. We originally had scheduled surgery with a neurosurgeon on December 21,  However our son in law Tyler who is a Chief E.N,T Resident at OHSU  did further research for us and discovered that the best surgeon to conduct the surgery is actually a Pediatric Neurosurgeon.  We met with Dr. Lissa Baird at OHSU on Monday and  feel very comfortable that she is the best surgeon  for us. She was very kind to expedite the surgery and moved it up to Saturday December 15. 


Cloy or our daughter Natalie will be updating this site while Sandra is recovering from surgery.  We welcome your prayers and positive thoughts for a successful outcome to this surgery and a speedy recovery.