In the radiosurgery era, the treatment strategies for vestibular schwannoma have changed at most centers. This new paradigm holds that rational CPA tumor therapy requires balancing often competing goals of therapy, and the associated risks and benefits of different therapies or combination of therapies. The present review discusses this new paradigm and its specific implications for CPA tumor surgery. Inevitably, such a review will focus largely on minimizing facial nerve morbidity, as this is both the most modifiable risk, and the risk that is most reduced with the use of adjuvant therapies, such as stereotactic radiosurgery (like Gamma knife). The facts about facial nerve preservation in CPA tumor surgery will be reviewed, and methods for avoiding facial nerve morbidity will be discussed.
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