Medical Miracle: Opera Singer's Lost Voice Returns

Dec. 18, 2009— -- For Michael Niemann, singing was like breathing. But when a devastating diagnosis crippled his vocal cords, the 41-year-old former New York City opera singer turned to an experimental treatment.

In 2007, Niemann was diagnosed with a rare disease called papillomatosis, recurring benign growths in the voice box, which made it impossible to sing and nearly impossible to speak.

"I was always 'well, I am a singer,' it is kind of how I define myself -- I am a musician," Niemann said, whose mother is also an opera singer.

Niemann's wife, Carolyn, called singing a "very spiritual thing" for her husband, who now works as an airline pilot, but still regularly sings as a cantor, as well.

"Music is something that has always had deep meaning to him, whether others were listening to him or not," she said.

Specialist after specialist told Niemann his singing career was over.

"I started losing hope after talking to other specialists across the country and pretty much getting the sense from them that this was a pretty tragic thing to happen to a singer because, 'guess what, you're not going to sing again. We'll get you fixed up so you can speak and function again in life – but to be an opera singer, or to sing on that level – it ain't going to happen with this condition,'" Niemann said.

Then Niemann walked into the office of Dr. Steven Zeitels, who has saved some of the world's most famous voices, including Julie Andrews and Steven Tyler.

Zeitels, who works for the Center for Laryngeal Surgery and Voice Rehabilitation at Massachusetts General Hospital, said he could remove the growths using a high-tech laser surgery. However, he warned that the disease might quickly return.

"No matter how good the lasers are, we were still getting recurrences…Many folks feel in some ways it can be worse than early cancers, because you are in the medical system often for the rest of your life," Zeitels said.

It is not unusual for patients diagnosed with papillomatosis to undergo 50 to 100 procedures on their voice box, Zeitels said.