Skull Base Center

Our multi-disciplinary team may include neurosurgeons, neurologists, otolaryngologists, neuro-oncologists, radiation and medical oncologists, and neuroradiologists.  Loyola Medicine neurosurgeons employ the latest technology, which allows them to deliver care that best preserves quality of life.  In fact, Loyola was among the first centers in the United States to adopt computerized surgical navigation systems to better target tumor treatments. 

Loyola's renonwned Center for Cranial Base Surgery treats patients with tumors at the undersurface of the brain.  It is an area tha borders the brain, ears, eyes, nose, throat, and neck.  Neurosurgeons, otolaryngologists, and other specialists each bring their unique expertise to treat these tumors, which often surround the nerves and block vessels traveling to or from the underside of thebrain.  The Center has developed innovative methods for removing difficult-to-reach tumors that may otherwise have been inoperable. 

The Division of Cranial Base Neurosurgery includes three, full-time board-certified attending physicians who have formed a highly specialized multidisciplinary team together with the Department of Otolaryngology as well as  physicians in Ophthalmology, Plastics and Reconstructive Surgery, Radiation Oncology, Endocrinology, and Oncology, to provide comprehensive evaluations and offer the best treatments. Skull base disorders include  pituitary tumors, acoustic neuromas, meningiomas, Rathke’s Cleft cysts, clival chordomas, chondrosarcomas, esthesioneuroblastomas, craniopharyngiomas, orbital tumors, and cerebrospinal fluid leaks.

At Loyola University Medical Center, we perform hundreds of skull base surgeries each year and have one of Chicago’s largest pituitary tumor and acoustic neuroma practices. 

Endoscopic Skull Base Surgery course

The Loyola University Medical Center Neurosurgery Department has hosted an annual, endoscopic skull base surgery course to teach physicians-in-training and resident physicians about exciting new techniques and approaches in cranial base surgery.  Our physicians have dedicated fellowship experience, national and international recognition, given hundreds of lectures, and receive federal funding to pursue laboratory-based research in the cranial base realm.  To learn more about this course, please contact Laura Kate Waters.