Brain Tumor + Headaches

A brain tumor is a mass or growth of abnormal cells in your brain.
headaches
1. Causes
  1. Primary
    1. Chronic daily headaches (for example, chronic migraine, chronic tension-type headache, or hemicranias continua) Cough headaches Exercise headaches Sex headaches
  2. Secondary
    1. Acute sinusitis (sinus infection) Arterial tears (carotid or vertebral dissections) Blood clot (venous thrombosis) within the brain — separate from stroke Brain aneurysm (a bulge in an artery in your brain) Brain AVM (arteriovenous malformation) — an abnormal formation of brain blood vessels
2. types
Symptoms
1. New onset or change in pattern of headaches Headaches that gradually become more frequent and more severe Unexplained nausea or vomiting Vision problems, such as blurred vision, double vision or loss of peripheral vision Gradual loss of sensation or movement in an arm or a leg
2. Difficulty with balance Speech difficulties Confusion in everyday matters Personality or behavior changes Seizures, especially in someone who doesn't have a history of seizures
Causes
1. Primary brain tumors originate in the brain itself or in tissues close to it, such as in the brain-covering membranes (meninges), cranial nerves, pituitary gland or pineal gland.
2. Primary brain tumors begin when normal cells acquire errors (mutations) in their DNA. These mutations allow cells to grow and divide at increased rates and to continue living when healthy cells would die. The result is a mass of abnormal cells, which forms a tumor.
ype of cells involved.
1. Gliomas. These tumors begin in the brain or spinal cord and include astrocytomas, ependymomas, glioblastomas, oligoastrocytomas and oligodendrogliomas.
  1. Meningiomas. A meningioma is a tumor that arises from the membranes that surround your brain and spinal cord (meninges). Most meningiomas are noncancerous.
    1. Acoustic neuromas (schwannomas). These are benign tumors that develop on the nerves that control balance and hearing leading from your inner ear to your brain.
Risk factors
1. Exposure to radiation. People who have been exposed to a type of radiation called ionizing radiation have an increased risk of brain tumor. Examples of ionizing radiation include radiation therapy used to treat cancer and radiation exposure caused by atomic bombs.
2. Family history of brain tumors. A small portion of brain tumors occurs in people with a family history of brain tumors or a family history of genetic syndromes that increase the risk of brain tumors.
Diagnosis
1. A neurological exam. A neurological exam may include, among other things, checking your vision, hearing, balance, coordination, strength and reflexes. Difficulty in one or more areas may provide clues about the part of your brain that could be affected by a brain tumor.
2. Imaging tests. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is commonly used to help diagnose brain tumors. In some cases a dye may be injected through a vein in your arm during your MRI study.
3. Tests to find cancer in other parts of your body. If it's suspected that your brain tumor may be a result of cancer that has spread from another area of your body, your doctor may recommend tests and procedures to determine where the cancer originated. One example might be a CT or PET scan to look for signs of lung cancer.
Treatment
1. Surgery
  1. If the brain tumor is located in a place that makes it accessible for an operation, your surgeon will work to remove as much of the brain tumor as possible.
2. Minimally Invasive Scarless Brain Surgery
  1. The procedure, offered at very few medical centers in the country, is used to help certain people who've been told they have an inoperable brain tumor. The surgical team is able to remove the tumor safely with minimized risk of serious complications.
3. Radiation therapy
  1. Radiation therapy uses high-energy beams, such as X-rays or protons, to kill tumor cells. Radiation therapy can come from a machine outside your body (external beam radiation), or, in very rare cases, radiation can be placed inside your body close to your brain tumor (brachytherapy).
4. Chemotherapy
  1. Chemotherapy uses drugs to kill tumor cells. Chemotherapy drugs can be taken orally in pill form or injected into a vein (intravenously). The chemotherapy drug used most often to treat brain tumors is temozolomide (Temodar), which is taken as a pill. Many other chemotherapy drugs are available and may be used depending on the type of cancer.
Rehabilitation after treatment
1. Physical therapy to help you regain lost motor skills or muscle strength
2. Occupational therapy to help you get back to your normal daily activities, including work, after a brain tumor or other illness
3. Speech therapy with specialists in speech difficulties (speech pathologists) to help if you have difficulty speaking

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Brain Tumor + Headaches

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	Created by shaikha alzaabi over 4 years ago