Contents:
- Medical Video: Brain Tumour facts: 10 things you should know about brain tumours | Cancer Research UK
- Types of brain tumors
- What are the symptoms?
- What is the diagnosis of brain tumors?
- Can it be treated?
Medical Video: Brain Tumour facts: 10 things you should know about brain tumours | Cancer Research UK
Are tumors and brain cancer the same thing? Actually these are two different things. Brain cancer is the growth of malignant cells in the brain that are abnormal, uncontrolled, and can spread to other brain tissues. Meanwhile, brain tumors are abnormal tissue growth in the brain or central spine that can interfere with brain function. Until now there is no known exact cause of brain tumors, but some researchers suspect that this is caused by genetic factors and exposure to dangerous chemical hazards.
You need to know, brain tumors cannot spread to other organs because brain tumors do not have the same access to blood flow caused by tumors in other parts of the body. But, this still needs to be watched out. It is important for you to detect brain tumors quickly if you experience symptoms.
Unfortunately, ignorance often makes a person unaware of the symptoms of a tumor. As a result, the tumor is only known after enlarging and begins to show symptoms that interfere with health.
Types of brain tumors
Brain tumors are classified into several categories,quoted via braintumor.org:
- Benign, is the least aggressive tumor type. Benign brain tumors come from cells in or around the brain, do not contain cancer cells, grow slowly, and have clear boundaries that do not spread to other tissues.
- Malignant, is a type of tumor that contains cancer cells, grows fast, can attack brain tissue around it, and has no clear boundaries.
- Primary, is a type of tumor that starts in brain cells and can spread to other parts of the brain or to the spine. Primary brain tumors usually rarely spread to other organs.
- Metastasis, is a type of tumor that starts in other parts of the body and then spreads to the brain.
What are the symptoms?
Some tumors have no symptoms until they are large enough and then cause a serious and rapid decline in health. A common initial symptom is a headache - so many people ignore these symptoms because they think it's a normal headache.
Symptoms of brain tumors vary because they adjust to the type of tumor and its location. Here are some symptoms of brain tumors that you need to know:
- Seizures
- Change in speaking or listening
- Changes in vision
- Numbness or tingling in the arms or legs
- Disorders of remembering
- Personality change
- Difficult to concentrate
- Weakness in one part of the body
What is the diagnosis of brain tumors?
For each symptom you feel, you need to consult with a doctor to get the right diagnosis. In diagnosing a tumor, the doctor will start by asking questions about the symptoms you feel, as well as looking at your personal and family health history. After that, the doctor will do a physical examination, including a neurological examination.
If the doctor suspects the possibility of a brain tumor, the doctor will do one or more of the following tests:
- Brain scanning- often with MRI - to see a detailed picture of the brain.
- Angiogram or MRA which involves the use of dyes and X-rays from blood vessels in the brain to look for tumor signs or abnormal blood vessels.
- Biopsy to determine whether the tumor is at risk of becoming cancerous or not.
Can it be treated?
Tumors are usually treated surgically. But if the location of the tumor is in the brain, surgery cannot be done.
Some ways to treat brain tumors is to do chemotherapy or radiation therapy to kill or at least shrink tumors that develop in the brain. But if the location of the tumor is deep within the brain, so that it is difficult to reach, then the treatment that can be done is Gamma Knife therapy, which is very focused radiation therapy.
Before you do treatment, you should discuss with your doctor about possible side effects of each treatment taken.
