Cranial Base Surgery
Highly Specialized Surgery to Remove Difficult-To-Reach Tumors
Hackensack Meridian Health is a national leader in providing treatment for adults and children with tumors and other abnormalities of the cranial base — an area that requires a team of highly trained surgeons with expertise in the latest techniques, tools and approaches in accessing tumors in hard-to-reach areas.Our surgeons work collaboratively to provide you with a personalized treatment plan so you can return to your normal lifestyle as quickly and safely as possible.
What is Cranial Base Surgery?
Cranial (skull) base surgery removes cancerous and noncancerous growths and abnormalities on the skull base, the underside of the brain or the top vertebrae of the spinal column.
Because skull base tumors are difficult to see and reach, removing them requires a team of sophisticated specialists, including fellowship-trained adult and pediatric neurosurgeons, fellowship-trained skull base otolaryngologists (ENT) and craniofacial plastic surgeons, ophthalmologists and oculoplastic surgeons, as well as medical neuro-oncologists, radiation oncologists, epileptologists, intensivists, neuro-radiologists palliative medicine specialists, and neuro-pathologists.
We perform skull base surgery in one of the following ways:
With this approach, a surgeon can access the growth by making a small opening inside the nose while utilizing an endoscope – a thin, flexible tube that provides light and a camera to see inside the body. Throughout the procedure, the team utilizes Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) to ensure that the growth has been removed.
This approach may require incisions in the facial area and/or within the skull to provide access to tumors or growths and may require pieces of bone to be removed.
What Is Cranial Base Surgery Used For?
Cranial base surgery helps to treat the following:
- Chordomas, slow-growing, malignant (cancerous) bone tumors usually found at the base of the skull but can be found all the way down to the tailbone
- Craniopharyngiomas, rare tumors that grow near the pituitary gland, typically affecting children but can also affect adults
- Cysts
- Growths caused by infections
- Meningiomas, benign (noncancerous) tumors that grow on the membranes that cover the brain or spinal cord inside the skull
- Other benign and malignant tumors that grow at the base of the skull
- Pituitary gland tumors (adenomas)
- Arteriovenous malformations, abnormal blood vessels that connect arteries and veins within the brain
- Cerebral (intracranial) aneurysm, a weakness that occurs inside a blood vessel located inside the brain that expands and fills with blood
- Cerebrospinal fluid fistulas, typically found with fractures within the skull base that connect with the nasal cavity, paranasal sinuses or middle ear
- Craniosynostosis, occurring when an infant’s bones within the skull close too early, causing issues with brain growth and shape of the skull
- Trigeminal neuralgia, a chronic, intense pain that affects the trigeminal nerve, which carries sensation from the face to the brain
Our Locations
Hackensack Meridian Health has three neurosurgical destination centers, each supporting multiple network hospitals in north, central and south New Jersey.
Oradell, NJ 07649
1-844-HMH-WELL
Our team of specialized neurosurgeons and neurologists are among the most highly trained and experienced in the country, achieving unparalleled outcomes when treating simple and complex brain tumors.
Hackensack University Medical Center is the only New Jersey hospital nationally-ranked in Neurology & Neurosurgery by U.S. News & World Report.
Meet Our Team
19 Davis Avenue, 4th Floor
Neptune, NJ 07753
1-844-HMH-WELL
Our fellowship trained neurosurgeons, neurologists, neuro-oncologists, and care team specialists work with patients to create and manage unique treatment plans.
In 2022, Jersey Shore University Medical Center received both the Cranial Neurosurgery Excellence Award and Neurosciences Excellence Award from Healthgrades.
Meet Our Team
Edison, NJ 08820
1-844-HMH-WELL
Our internationally-recognized team of neurosurgeons, neurologists and care specialists are pioneering advancements in brain tumor care. Currently, JFK University Medical Center is the only hospital in New Jersey to use virtual reality (VR) technology to plan surgery, giving patients a three-dimensional view of what their surgery will entail. VR is also changing the way surgeries are performed, even reducing the amount of time spent in the operating room.
In 2022, JFK University Medical Center received the Neurosciences Excellence Award from Healthgrades.
Meet Our Team
