Overview of Brain Tumors
Diagnosis and Treatment of Abnormal Growths in the Cranium
Brain tumors, especially malignant brain cancer, are a challenge for both doctors and patients.
The presence of a tumor in the brain, in light of U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy's malignant brain cancer, is very frightening. Both the intense treatment involved and the life expectancy upon diagnosis can make one feel uneasy. Plus, brain tumors are estimated to occur in up to 20 people per 100,000 each year, making the condition relatively uncommon.
Medicine is doing what it can to manage the disease in the best way possible. The following is an overview of brain tumors.
Causes and Tumor Types
A couple of risk factors are associated with brain tumors, including past radiation to the head and cell mutations. Some brain tumors are primary tumors, originating within the brain itself. They include but are not limited to meningiomas, lymphomas, and gliomas like glioblastoma multiforme and astrocytoma. Other tumors are metastatic, originating from elsewhere in the body, as with lung cancer, breast cancer, and melanoma.
Symptoms and Signs
Regardless of the tumor type, brain tumors cause a variety of problems due to compression, destruction, and swelling of normal brain tissue. Headache is a common symptom and one that usually presents with a worrisome characteristic, like a long continuous duration. Mental status changes, such as decreased alertness and altered memory, can also occur. Other symptoms stem from involvement of specific brain structures, like seizures and eye movement dysfunction.
Diagnosis
If there is any suspicion of a brain tumor, imaging studies are ordered, mainly computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). CT is quicker and can initially detect the presence of a tumor. MRI, however, provides more detail and generally follows the initial CT scan.
Treatment
When a patient is found to have a brain tumor based on active symptoms, the first step is to stabilize the patient. One medication often given is Decadron (dexamethasone), a corticosteroid to decrease any inflammation and swelling around the tumor and thereby alleviating symptoms. Later, a neurosurgeon performs a brain biopsy to take a small sample of the tumor. This sample is then analyzed microscopically by a pathologist, who determines the exact tumor type and how fast it is growing (grade).
Options for treatment include surgical excision, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy. The success of treatment depends on several factors. Treatment of tumors that are small, closer to the brain surface, and well separated from normal brain tissue tend to be more successful than treatment of tumors that are large, deep inside the brain, and infiltrating the brain tissue. Sometimes, a tumor has such a low likelihood of successful treatment that a neurosurgeon may feel more inclined to not treat than to perform surgery with a high likelihood of devastating complications.
Final Words
Brain tumors are not common and their symptoms do have many other causes, so it may not be necessary to be very alarmed. Nevertheless, if you or someone you know does have this condition, the preceding information may hopefully help you understand and cope with the process.
