I understand that the ultimate decision is mine to make (to go speak to a neurosurgeon), but I'm looking for advice.
I'm 53 years old and found out 1.5 years ago from an unrelated MRI that I have a 8mm CCM in my occipital lobe, which controls my left eye vision. I don't have, nor have I ever had, any symptoms. My daily fear is waiting for this thing to bleed, which at a minimum will damage my vision, rendering me useless to drive, work, pay the bills, etc. Although I am 53, I have a 10-year old son whose life I am extremely active with (ex. I coach his basketball and baseball teams, I take him on ski vacations, we take weekend road trips, we play around a lot, etc.). He lives with me 50% of the time where I have joint custody due to a divorce. Without a significant other around, I fear having a bleed while with him and then being debilitated thereafter without being able to enjoy the life we currently have together.
At 53 without symptoms, do I risk continuing to live a normal life at the expense of having a bleed at any time? Or do I take a pre-emptive stance and have surgery to fix this, so that I can live a healthy life without worry?
In my situation, what are the odds of a bleed if I've never had one before? At 5'11, 185 lbs., I'm in relatively good shape. My cholesterol is fine and my blood pressure is normal. I live everyday waiting for something to happen. I'm afraid to exercise as I did before discovery, since that increases blood pressure. I'm afraid to take ibuprofen since it thins blood, even though I've taken it my whole life and is most effective. I'm afraid to go on roller coasters with my son, which is a joint passion of ours. We just had a great ski vacation in Vail, but I feared daily that the high altitude would put me at risk of a bleed.
Do I have surgery to fix this, in hopes that it's a routine procedure, or as routine as it can be, where I'm back to normal living within a few weeks? Or do I live day by day hoping it doesn't bleed? What chances are there that it will bleed? Are my fears valid or irrational?
What would you do? Thanks.