Brain tumors occur when your body’s cells grow and multiply faster than they should. Sometimes these cells become cancerous (malignant) and form a mass.
Researchers don’t know what causes most brain tumors, but they do know that inherited syndromes and certain exposures can increase your risk. A healthy lifestyle and limiting exposure to radiation and chemicals may help reduce your risk.
Symptoms of brain tumors vary depending on where the tumour is and how quickly or slowly it grows. They can also occur because the tumour is putting pressure on other parts of the brain or body, for example by blocking the flow of fluid around the skull or increasing the pressure inside the skull. Some brain tumors are benign (non-cancerous) and they stay in the area where they start and do not spread. Others may be malignant (cancerous) and they can spread to other areas of the brain or the skull.
Often headache is the first symptom of a brain tumor. It can be a constant headache or it can come and go. Sometimes it is worse in the morning or at night. It can also be accompanied by other symptoms such as seizures, difficulty thinking or speaking, changes in personality, weakness on one side of the body, numbness or tingling, vision changes and loss of balance.
These symptoms can happen suddenly or they can develop gradually over months or even years. Occasionally, brain tumors cause no symptoms at all and are only diagnosed by chance during routine examinations or tests for other reasons.
Some of the most common types of brain tumors include:
Meningiomas (benign): These tumors grow from the membranes that enclose the brain and spinal cord. They usually grow very slowly and are quite large before they cause symptoms. They can be found in people of all ages and they affect women twice as much as men.
Ependymomas: These tumors form in the lining of ventricles, the fluid-filled cavities that line the brain and the spinal cord. They can occur at any age but are most common in childhood and adolescence. Schwannomas: These noncancerous tumors begin in the cells that produce myelin, the fatty covering that protects nerves. They are found mainly in middle-aged adults.
A headache that doesn’t go away or gets worse may be a sign of a brain tumor. If a person is experiencing these symptoms, they should see their GP, who might refer them to a specialist or ask them to come into Accident and Emergency. The doctor will ask questions about the person’s symptoms and examine them, checking things like their reflexes, balance, coordination, strength and sense of smell and taste. They will also check whether the brain tumour is pressing on areas of the brain that control movement, speech, memory or emotions.
Other diagnostic tests might include a computed tomography (CT) scan or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain, which use computers and X-rays to create pictures of the brain. These tests can help pinpoint the location of a brain tumor and show its size. In some cases, the doctor might inject a contrast dye into the bloodstream to make certain areas of the brain appear more clearly.
Sometimes the doctor might do a special type of MRI called functional MRI, which gives more-detailed images of the brain and shows how different parts of it work. For example, if the tumour is affecting part of the brain that controls movement, the MRI will show which muscles are affected. This information can help the health care team plan surgery and other treatments.
Some types of brain tumours aren’t cancerous and are called benign brain tumours. But others are and are often referred to as brain cancers or malignant brain tumours. The way the cells look under a microscope and other lab tests can tell the health care team what kind of tumor it is. The doctor can then create a treatment plan.
People who have some genetic conditions such as neurofibromatosis, von Hippel-Lindau disease or Li-Fraumeni syndrome are at a greater risk of developing a brain tumour. The same is true for those who have had previous radiation therapy to the head or neck. Some chemicals can also increase the chances of a brain tumour developing, particularly in children. Some of these chemicals include pesticides and petroleum-based products.
The main treatment for brain tumors is surgery. In this procedure, a neurosurgeon makes an opening in your skull (called a craniotomy). They then remove as much of the abnormal tissue as possible without damaging the important parts of the brain and spinal cord. If they can’t completely remove the tumor, radiation therapy or chemotherapy may be needed afterwards to treat any abnormal cells that remain. This is called adjuvant treatment.
Noncancerous brain tumors don’t contain cancer cells, so they usually don’t spread to other parts of the body. These types of tumors often cause symptoms that develop slowly, such as headaches, dizziness or a feeling that the world is spinning (vertigo). Noncancerous brain tumours usually don’t recur, but they can grow over time.
A doctor can identify a brain tumor by doing a neurological exam to check your reflexes, senses and mental function. They also use imaging tests to find the location of the tumor. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) are the best tests for identifying brain tumors. They can show whether the tumor is cancerous or not and how fast it is growing.
If the brain tumor is cancerous, doctors will want to know how quickly it’s growing so they can decide what treatment to give you. Your doctor will tell you its stage based on how fast it is growing and how much it has grown into the surrounding brain tissue. The stages are 1 to 4, with 1 being the slowest-growing and 4 being the fastest-growing.
The doctor can also tell you the type of brain tumor you have, which can help them decide on your treatment. They may do a biopsy, which involves taking a small amount of the tumor and examining it under a microscope to see what kind of cells it has. The doctor can also perform a biopsy using a needle placed in the brain. Tumors buried deep in the brain or near critical structures can be hard to reach safely with this technique, but doctors use it when other methods aren’t available.
There’s no way to prevent brain tumors, but you can take steps to reduce your risk. For example, avoid smoking and excessive exposure to radiation. You can also try to reduce your stress and anxiety. And talk with your health care team if you have concerns about your family history. Sometimes certain DNA changes increase your risk for a brain tumor, but this is rare.
There are over 120 different kinds of brain tumors, based on what tissue they start in. Most brain tumors are noncancerous, but some grow quickly and can damage the brain.
Symptoms of brain tumors vary, but include headache, feeling or being sick and seizures (fits). If you have these symptoms, make an appointment with your GP. They may refer you to a specialist or ask you to go to Accident and Emergency.
The first step in diagnosis is usually an imaging test called magnetic resonance imaging, or MRI. This uses strong magnets to create pictures of the brain. Sometimes a dye is injected into a vein in the arm before an MRI, which can help show more clearly any areas of concern.
Other tests that can help with the diagnosis include a CT scan or an X-ray. These tests can give your health care team more information about how fast the tumor is growing and where it is in the brain.
A positron emission tomography scan, or PET scan, can also detect some brain tumors. This is an imaging test that measures how much the cells in your brain are dividing and multiplying. Tumor cells divide and multiply faster than healthy cells, so they tend to take up more of the tracer, which shows up on the pictures taken by the PET scanner.
Some brain tumors are secondary, meaning they spread to the brain from cancer that started somewhere else in the body. These are more common in adults.
The treatment for a brain or spinal cord tumor depends on the type, where it is and how fast it’s growing. Your health care team may recommend a combination of treatments, such as surgery, radiation and drugs. You may need a shunt, which is a thin piece of tubing surgically placed in your brain to drain excess cerebrospinal fluid. Drugs, such as mannitol and corticosteroids, can also lower the pressure in your skull.
Many benign (not cancer) brain tumors grow slowly and don’t cause symptoms. Others can be treated by observation or surgery. Medications can control side effects, such as steroids to reduce swelling and fluid build-up in the skull (edema). Anticonvulsants help prevent or control seizures.
Symptoms depend on where the brain tumor is located. Some symptoms include headaches, vision changes, personality changes, vomiting and severe head pain.
Headaches are one of the most common symptoms of brain tumors. They can be caused by many things, including stress, diet, exercise and even medications. Usually, a simple over-the-counter painkiller will take care of the problem. But if the headaches continue to come back, it might be worth seeing your doctor.
A headache may be a sign of a brain tumour if it is severe, comes on quickly or won’t go away. It is also important to see your GP if the headache feels different from normal, or if you’re feeling sick or have changes in your eyesight.
Symptoms of brain tumors depend on where the tumor is, how fast it grows and whether or not it presses on other parts of the brain. They can be gradual and develop over months or years, or they can happen all at once, for example if you have a bleed in your brain (subdural hematoma). Other signs of a brain tumor include loss of appetite, nausea, seizures and weakness. Some people who have brain tumors may also experience personality changes.
Brain tumors may cause different symptoms, depending on where they are and how fast they grow. Some brain tumors aren’t cancerous (benign). Others contain cancer cells (malignant) and may spread to other parts of the body.
Some people have a headache when they have a brain tumor, but they also might experience changes in sensation or numbness; trouble swallowing or coordination problems; weakness or numbness of one side of the face or body; and difficulty thinking or understanding language. Changes in vision and hearing, and a loss of appetite are also common symptoms.
If a brain tumor is in the part of the cerebellum that controls movement and coordination, a person might have trouble walking or coordinating their hands, feet or legs. A tumor in the pituitary gland or near the optic nerve might cause a loss of balance; numbness, tingling or pain in the head, neck or face; or difficulty swallowing.
If a brain tumor causes herniation of the brain, doctors may have to put a tube in your nose or mouth to help you breathe and reduce pressure within your skull. This is usually done in a hospital emergency room.
Sometimes the symptoms of a brain tumor develop slowly over time. For example, a tumor in the part of the brain that controls movement may cause weakness or problems with balance on one side of the body. Problems with speech or understanding language can also occur if the brain tumor is near the cerebellum or in the frontal lobe of the brain. Tumors that develop in the parts of the brain involved in balance or eye movement may cause problems with swallowing and vision.
Some people with brain tumours don’t have any symptoms at all, particularly when the tumour is very small. But as the tumour grows, it can press on other parts of the brain and stop them working normally. This may cause symptoms such as headaches, a loss of appetite, problems with your eyes (including blurred vision) and problems thinking or speaking. It may also cause nausea or vomiting. These symptoms are all signs that you should see a doctor as soon as possible. The sooner a brain tumour is diagnosed, the easier it will be to treat.
Vomiting can be a sign of a brain tumor if it occurs in the area that controls balance (the cerebellum). It may also indicate a tumor near or involving cranial nerves.
A cancerous brain tumour can cause vomiting because it takes up more space in the skull, increasing pressure inside the head. It may also affect hormone levels, causing an imbalance that leads to nausea. Nausea and vomiting can also be side effects of chemotherapy treatments for brain tumors.
It’s important to tell your doctor if you have new symptoms, especially those that don’t go away. They can help you find the best treatment for your symptoms and keep them from getting worse. If you’ve recently been diagnosed with a brain tumor, download our free “Newly Diagnosed Toolkit” for the information you need to get started. You can also call our Macmillan Support Line for more information and advice. The number is 0808 808 00 00. Calls are free and confidential. You can also ask your GP or nurse to refer you for specialist assessment.
Everybody forgets sometimes, but if you’re suddenly having major memory problems—forgetting simple words, asking yourself the same question over and over, or losing the ability to remember new information—it could be a sign of brain tumors. You may also notice a loss of balance or trouble walking, numbness in one side of the face or body, trouble swallowing, and slurred speech.
Tumors in the brain can cause these sensory symptoms by pushing on or growing into the areas around them. They can also increase pressure within the skull, which disrupts how the brain functions and leads to these symptoms.
If you’re experiencing severe headaches, vision changes or sudden onset of personality changes, it’s important to see your doctor right away. They can assess whether a tumor is causing your symptoms and find out what’s causing them. They can also provide palliative care, which helps manage pain and other symptoms for people with serious illnesses. Download our free ‘Newly Diagnosed Toolkit’ for first steps. You can also call the Macmillan Support Line for free, confidential help.
If you feel dizzy or have clumsiness, it can be a sign that you have a brain tumor. This symptom happens because the tumour is taking up space inside your skull and increasing pressure on the brain tissue. This can also affect the flow of fluid within the skull.
Tumors in the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain can cause changes in your emotional responses. You may laugh at inappropriate times, have a sudden increased interest in sex or start throwing temper tantrums. Brain tumors in this area of the brain can also affect your spatial perception, so you may notice clumsiness or a loss of balance or coordination.
It can be hard to tell when a symptom is caused by a brain tumor or another health condition. It is important to track your symptoms and report them to your doctor if they are consistent. This will help your doctor make a diagnosis. In addition, tracking your symptoms can help you and your doctor decide when it is time to take action.
Eye floaters aren’t necessarily a sign of brain tumors, but any sudden onset of vision changes should be evaluated by your doctor. The specific symptoms of vision problems will depend on where in the brain the tumor is located and what parts of the visual processing system it affects, but they can include any type of change from blurry or double vision to complete blindness, depending on how much pressure a tumor places on your optic nerve or the structures that make up the optic chiasm.
Tumors in the occipital lobe, which is responsible for processing what you see, can lead to problems like blind spots and difficulty with certain tasks, such as reading or writing. Tumors in the pituitary gland, which is at the base of the brain, can also interfere with the visual pathways if they cause it to swell or press against them.
Hearing loss on one side, vertigo and tinnitus can also be a sign that a tumor is pressing on your brain stem or the areas that control hearing or balance, Black told AARP. It’s also important to note any unexplained tingling, because it can also be a brain tumor symptom.
Seizures are a sign of some brain tumors, and can be the first symptom for some people. They can be mild, severe or come and go. If you experience a seizure for the first time or it comes back, tell your doctor as soon as possible.
A tumour can increase the pressure inside your skull (called raised intracranial pressure), and this can cause seizures. This happens because the brain is trying to get more oxygen and nutrients, and the tumour blocks that process.
There are many different types of seizures, and they depend on where the brain tumour starts. For example, frontal lobe seizures begin in the part of the brain that controls your emotions and memory. They can make you lose consciousness but you’ll still look awake, jerk or shake, or become confused or uninhibited.
Other types of seizure are called focal impaired awareness seizures or complex partial seizures. These are more serious than focal aware seizures and usually affect both sides of the brain. They can also involve a tonic phase — when your body stiffens, and a clonic phase — which causes your muscles to twitch or shake.
Treatment for bone cancer aims to control the tumour, relieve pain and prevent it spreading. You may have surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy or drug treatment.
Your doctor will examine you and might order X-rays or other tests. They will ask about your general health and what medicines you take.
A cancer that forms in bone, osteosarcoma usually affects the long bones of the arms and legs. It most often happens in teenagers during a growth spurt and it’s more common in boys than girls. It can also happen in older adults. The exact cause is not known. But it is thought that changes in a person’s DNA increase the risk of getting osteosarcoma.
A biopsy is the only way to know for sure if you have osteosarcoma. During the biopsy, doctors take out a small piece of tissue from the tumor to look at under a microscope. It’s best to have the biopsy done by doctors who treat bone tumors. Then the same doctors can remove the tumor later. The type of surgery used depends on where the tumor is and whether it has spread.
Staging is a process that uses imaging tests and other tests to find out how far the cancer has spread. It helps doctors plan the best treatment.
The most common treatments for osteosarcoma are chemotherapy and surgery. Doctors can also use radiation.
Chemotherapy is a treatment that uses drugs to kill cancer cells. These drugs can damage other healthy cells, so you may have side effects. Some of the most common side effects of chemotherapy include nausea, vomiting, low appetite, and tiredness.
Your doctor will give you a medicine called a steroid to help prevent nausea and vomiting. You’ll get it as a shot or in a vein (IV). It may be given with other medicines, such as steroids or antibiotics.
Surgery is the main treatment for most osteosarcomas. It can be done in a way that saves the limb. This is called limb-sparing surgery.
If the tumor is in a large bone, doctors may need to break it into pieces or remove part of the limb. If it’s in a smaller bone, they might remove just the tumor itself. Sometimes doctors can replace the lost bone and tissue with a graft of tissue from another area of your body or with artificial bones.
If the tumor hasn’t spread, you may not need further treatment. But you’ll need to follow up with your doctor regularly. This will include blood tests and imaging tests to check for complications and to see if the cancer comes back or spreads.
The treatment for undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma depends on where the cancer is located and how large it is. When possible, doctors try to remove the sarcoma completely with surgery. They aim to remove the tumor and a margin of healthy tissue around it with as little impact on surrounding structures as possible. If the cancer affects the arms and legs, surgeons may prefer to use limb-sparing operations. However, in some cases it may be necessary to amputate the affected limb. Radiation therapy is also used in combination with surgery or on its own. This type of radiation comes from a machine that moves around you as you lie on a table and directs the beam to precise points on your body.
Chemotherapy is usually used to treat undifferentiated pleomorphic cancer that comes back after treatment or spreads to other parts of the body. It can be given before surgery to shrink the tumor or on its own after surgery to kill any remaining cancer cells. This type of chemotherapy targets specific abnormalities present in cancer cells, which can cause them to die. Targeted drug treatments are often used in conjunction with chemotherapy to increase the effectiveness of the treatment.
Undifferentiated pleomorphic relapsed sarcoma can be difficult to diagnose because it can mimic other types of soft-tissue tumors. Therefore, it is important to get a complete medical history and perform a physical exam before making a diagnosis. Your doctor will look for any signs of lumps or swelling in the affected area and may recommend imaging tests such as X-rays, CT scans and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to take detailed pictures of the affected area.
X-rays and other imaging tests can help to determine the size of the tumor, whether it is in a bone or deep within the tissues. The doctor will then order a biopsy to obtain a sample of the tumor for laboratory testing. The biopsy will be examined to confirm the diagnosis and rule out other conditions. The results of the biopsy will help determine your treatment options.
Fibrosarcoma is an extremely rare, aggressive bone cancer that mainly affects young people in the second decade of life (ages 10 – 19). It has a more limited age distribution than osteosarcoma and is less common than osteoblastic osteosarcoma. Its radiographic appearance varies, depending on whether it is lytic (destructive) or blastic. It is often confused with osteosarcoma, especially the telangiectatic form of the disease. The diagnosis of fibrosarcoma requires the expertise of a specialist in bone tumors. A familiarity with the work-up of these lesions is important to minimize unnecessary tests, as well as ensuring that required studies are performed in an efficient manner. This can be accomplished by involving an orthopaedic oncologist early in the case, if possible. The MSTS maintains a database of such specialists, and your own orthopaedic oncologist should be able to direct you to someone he or she often refers these cases to.
Histologically, fibrosarcoma of bone looks very similar to other bone sarcomas such as malignant fibrous histiocytoma, myxofibrosarcoma and undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma. It is important to have these lesions examined by pathologists who are familiar with the different types of sarcomas, as they require careful examination and sophisticated microscopic techniques in order to be distinguished from other benign or malignant bone tumors.
Depending on the stage of the tumor, a patient may require pre- or post-operative chemotherapy. The goal of chemotherapy is to kill the large tumor mass as well as any circulating cancer cells that are not visible on imaging.
Once a patient has undergone surgical resection, his or her prognosis depends on the histologic grade and the presence of metastatic spread to the lungs. Unfortunately, metastasis is not uncommon for bone sarcoma, especially in patients with lower grade tumors.
Although these cancers are rare, they can be very difficult to treat effectively. Because they tend to infiltrate and destroy bones quickly, it is important that a specialist in bone tumors be involved in the diagnosis and management of these lesions. The prognosis depends on the size, grade and staging of the tumor, as well as other factors such as the patient’s general health, age and comorbidities.
Giant cell tumor is a noncancerous (benign) bone cancer that usually grows near a joint. It is more common in the ends of the long bones in the legs and arms. It most often occurs in adults between ages 20 and 40. It may cause pain, swelling, and limited range of motion. Giant cell tumor of bone is usually diagnosed with a physical examination and X-rays. Other diagnostic tests may include a blood test, CT scan, MRI, or a bone scan.
A giant cell tumor is a slow-growing disease that does not spread to other parts of the body. The treatment goal is to remove the tumor, relieve symptoms, and restore function. Your doctor may recommend surgery, radiation therapy, or a combination of treatments.
Symptoms of giant cell tumors include pain, a lump or mass, and a limited range of motion in the affected area. Most often, the pain comes from damage to bone tissue by the tumor. Giant cell tumors also can erode or destroy adjacent tissue, and they may form soft tissue masses.
In rare cases, giant cell tumors can spread to the lungs. If this happens, surgical removal of the tumor and the lung is necessary.
The surgical procedure most commonly used to treat giant cell tumors is curettage. During this procedure, your doctor uses special instruments to scrape the tumor from the bone. It is typically followed by packing the site with cement.
Although GCTs are not generally considered to be cancerous, they tend to recur after surgical removal. Complete surgical removal is the best way to prevent recurrence, and it is the treatment of choice for GCTs in locations that are amenable to surgery.
Radiation therapy can help control and destroy tumors that cannot be removed surgically. It is typically followed by chemotherapy to prevent recurrence of the cancer. Giant cell tumors can recur, so your doctor will likely recommend follow-up visits for several years after the initial treatment. These visits will include X-rays of the affected area and chest X-rays. The X-rays will help determine whether the tumor has recurred or if it has spread to other areas of the body.
