KOMO's Goertzen to have surgery

For the second time in seven years, KOMO-TV news anchor Kathi Goertzen, 47, will have surgery for a slow-growing brain tumor.

In an announcement made to viewers, Goertzen said the surgery is scheduled this week to remove as much of the tumor as possible. She said she expects to be in the hospital a week.

"I look forward to being back on my feet and back on the news," she said. The tumor is benign, she added.

Goertzen had surgery for the tumor in 1998 after she suffered a hearing loss. At the time, she said, the tumor was growing on nerves inside her skull and pressing against her brain and brain stem.

She had surgery on the golf-ball-size tumor, and doctors at the time said there was a good chance the tumor could return.

Surgeons had to leave a small portion of the tumor below her right ear because it was intertwined with nerves that affect speech, swallowing and facial control.

Her physician at the time said there was a 60 to 70 percent chance the tumor, a rare type of meningioma, could regrow in the same location. He called it a "pretty aggressive benign tumor."

Goertzen, a graduate of Washington State University, has been an anchor at KOMO since 1982. She is married and has two daughters.

KOMO said it will post regular updates on Goertzen's condition on the station's Web site, at www.komotv.com and viewers can send messages to kathiwishes@komotv.com.