In the United States alone, around 30 adults in every 100,000 are affected by brain and nervous system tumors.
Brain tumors can be dangerous because they spread to or put pressure on healthy parts of the brain.
Sadly, thousands of people around the world die from brain tumors each year. But can a brain tumor be cured? Let’s explore the subject further.
Types of Brain Tumors
A malignant brain tumor is a cancerous growth in the brain, while a benign brain tumor isn’t cancerous. Benign tumors grow slowly. Certain types of benign tumors can turn into malignant tumors.
There are many types of both benign and malignant tumors. Their names depend on their location in the brain. Typical malignant brain tumors include chordoma, chondrosarcoma, lymphoma, medulloblastoma, and rhabdomyosarcoma.
Symptoms of a Brain Tumor
The symptoms people experience from a brain tumor depend on where the tumor is in the brain. But common symptoms include headaches, which are often worse when coughing and sneezing or in the morning time, as well as memory problems, personality changes, regularly feeling sick or vomiting, vision problems, speech problems, and seizures.
Because such symptoms are common symptoms of other health problems, if you experience one or more, it’s unlikely you’ll have a brain tumor.
However, if you do experience any of those symptoms, you should see your doctor straight away. If it is a brain tumor, it needs to be treated much sooner rather than later.
Treatment Options
There are multiple brain tumor treatment options available. Each one aims to remove as much of the tumor as possible and try to prevent it from returning.
Surgery
With surgery, a surgeon removes a small section of the skull and cuts out the tumor. The small piece of skull is then fixed back into place.
Radiotherapy
Radiotherapy involves using external equipment to kill cancer cells after surgery.
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy involves patients taking medicine to kill the cancerous cells after surgery. In cases in which the tumor cannot be removed, chemotherapy can be used to help relieve symptoms.
Radiosurgery
With radiosurgery, lots of tiny beams of radiation are fired at the cancer to kill it. Radiosurgery is an option when you’re unable to have surgery.
Medicines
Medications can be great for relieving brain tumor symptoms like vomiting, headaches, and seizures.
Can brain tumors be cured?
It is possible for brain tumors to be cured with the right treatment. However, that doesn’t mean every brain tumor will be cured. And sadly, it can often be difficult to prevent brain tumors from getting worse.
The outlook for a malignant brain tumor depends on various factors, such as where in the brain the tumor is located, the size of the tumor, and the medical grade of the tumor.
If the brain tumor is caught early on, there is a much better chance of curing it. However, sometimes brain tumors that are successfully treated do come back.
See a Doctor if You Have Symptoms
As briefly mentioned earlier, if you experience any of the symptoms of a brain tumor, you should see your local physician or another medical professional straight away.
After running tests, it can be determined whether you do have a tumor or not. The sooner it is spotted, the sooner it can be treated and the higher chance you have of curing it.
If you do have a brain tumor, a medical professional can help you explore the different treatment options to find the best solutions for you. Often, a combination of treatments works best.
Speaks from heart, always too passionate and driven by emotions. Spins the words with kindness & sharpness, intriguing your ever-inscrutable minds.
