This explains why it can seem that NF can skip a generation. Even though the parents have NF but have no outward signs of the disorder, their children or grandchildren have a fifty-fifty chance of inheriting the disorder. Sometimes the skeletal system is involved, causing deformities of the spine or legs and even the face. A significant hearing loss occurring in adolescence or as a young adult, could easily be blamed on the person listenting to too much loud music. When this happens a tumor can be left to grow on it's own until more serious problems develope.
Tumors can also grow on the brain and spinal cord.
NF is a chaotic disorder which follows no predictable course, follows no time frame, respects nobody, and rarely presents itself in the same way, even within families. NF is a difficult inheritance to accept and live with. A diagnosis of NF can be like living with a time bomb, especially when tumors grow in life threating areas, or located in areas of the spine that could cause paralysis. However, most people with NF live life to the fullest and do very well living productive lives. Hope is one solace families with NF have, and optimism is a strong coping mechanism.