brain tumors

There are many types of brain tumors . Some tumors are benign and some are malignant. The tumor can start in the brain tissue (primary brain tumors) or the malignant growth can start in other organs of the body and spread to the brain (secondary, metastatic brain tumors).

The number of brain tumors diagnosed each year is increasing. Especially the increase in the number of tumors occurs over the last decades. But the reasons for this are not known.

The reasons

Primary brain tumors begin in the brain tissue or in border areas, such as the meninges, cranial nerves, pituitary gland, or pineal gland. Primary brain tumors begin to develop when normal cells encounter errors (mutations) in their DNA. These mutations cause cells to begin to divide and grow at an increased rate and continue to exist even when healthy cells should have died. This leads to the development of neoplasms of pathological cells that form a tumor.

Secondary (metastatic) brain tumors are tumors that arise as a result of a malignant process that begins its development in any organ of the body, and then spreads (metastasizes) to the brain. In some cases, cancer occurs long before a brain tumor is detected. In other cases, a brain tumor is the first sign of cancer that has begun to develop in some other organ of the body.

Secondary brain tumors are more common than primary brain tumors.

Symptoms

Common signs and symptoms that a brain tumor causes include:

• headache or changes in the traditional picture of headache (headaches with tumors become more frequent and severe over time, worse in the supine position or after sleep);
• unexplained bouts of nausea or vomiting;
• vision problems, blurred vision, double vision, or loss of peripheral vision;
• difficulties in maintaining balance;
• speech disorders;
• gradual loss of touch or sensation in an arm or leg;
• difficulty doing daily activities;
• personality or behavioral changes;
• hormonal (endocrine) disorders;
• spasms, in particular, at patients at whom they were not observed earlier;
• hearing disorders;
• confusion, drowsiness, stupor, stupor, cerebral coma.

Treatment Methods

Treatment for a brain tumor depends on the type, size, and location of the tumor, as well as the general health and preferences of the patient. The doctor can prescribe a treatment that will suit the situation of a particular patient.

Operation. If the brain tumor is in an area that can be operated on, the surgeon will try to remove as much of the tumor as possible. In some cases, the tumors are small and can be easily separated from the surrounding brain tissue, making surgery to completely remove the tumor justified. In other cases, tumors are located within sensitive areas in the brain, making surgery risky. In such cases, the doctor may try to remove the tumor as far as it is safe to do so. Removing even part of a brain tumor can help relieve signs and symptoms of the disease. In some cases, only a small biopsy is taken to confirm the diagnosis.

Radiation therapy. Radiation therapy uses beams of high-energy particles, such as x-rays, to kill tumor cells. Radiation therapy may come from a machine placed outside the patient’s body (external beam radiation therapy) or, in very rare cases, a radiation source may be placed in the patient’s body near the brain tumor (close-focus radiation therapy).

External beam radiation therapy can focus only on the area of ​​the brain where the tumor is located, or it can affect the entire brain (whole brain radiation). Whole-brain radiation is sometimes used after surgery to kill tumor cells that probably haven’t been removed. Whole-brain irradiation may be used as a treatment option for multiple inoperable brain tumors. Whole-brain irradiation is often used in situations where cancer has spread to the brain.

The side effects of radiation therapy depend on the type and dose of radiation received by the patient. Usually, you may experience a feeling of fatigue, headaches, weakness and irritation of the scalp.

Today, new methods of remote irradiation using a gamma knife, a linear accelerator and a cyber knife are known.

Chemotherapy. Chemotherapy uses drugs that kill tumor cells. Chemotherapy drugs can be taken by mouth or given by vein (intravenous) so they travel throughout the body. Chemotherapy drugs can also be injected into the spine, so the treatment only affects the patient’s central nervous system.

There is another type of chemotherapy where the product is given during surgery. When removing all or part of a brain tumor, the surgeon may place one or more disk-shaped capsules in the free space left by the tumor. These capsules release the chemotherapy product slowly over the next few days.

The side effects of chemotherapy depend on the type and dose of the drug taken. Systemic chemotherapy can cause nausea, vomiting, and hair loss.

Rehabilitation after a course of treatment

Rehabilitation may be a necessary part of recovery, as brain tumors can develop in areas of the brain that control motor skills, speech, vision, and thinking. Sometimes the brain can recover on its own after an injury or brain tumor treatment, but this takes time and patience.

According to the site www.neurosurgery.com.ua

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