Brain Body Tumours
The brain is the most important organ in the body. It controls and sends messages to the entire body. There are many nerves in the body; some go to places like the eyes and ears. Some go to and run through the entire spinal cord. This connects the brain to other parts of the body. There are three major parts of the brain.
The cerebrum is the largest part and it lies on the top. It tells us information, like what is going on around us and how responds to things. It also controls things like reading, thinking, learning, speech, and even emotions. There are two parts of the cerebrum, the left cerebral hemisphere and the right cerebral hemisphere. The right hemisphere controls the muscle on the left side of the body, while the left hemisphere control muscles on the right side of the body.
The other two parts are the cerebellum, and the brain stem. The cerebellum is just bellow the cerebrum at the back end of the brain. It controls the balance and complex actions, for instance walking and talking. The brain stem is attached to the spinal cord. It controls many things, like hunger, thirst, breathing, body temperature, blood pressure, and other body functions.
Cancer isn’t very hard to understand. Cancer begins in cells, which make up tissues that will make up the organs of the body. Health cells grow and divide to form new cells, as needed. When this process goes wrong, new cells form when the body doesn’t need them. These extra cells form mass of tissues called tumours, which are sometimes cancerous.
“The brain and spinal column make up the central nervous system (CNS), where all vital functions of the body are controlled. When tumours arise in the central nervous system, they are especially problematic because a person’s thought processes and movements can be affected. These tumours can also be difficult to treat because the tissues surrounding a tumor that may be affected by surgery or radiation may play a vital role in functioning” (A.P. John, 2003).
There are two types of brain tumours, benign and malignant brain tumours. “Secondary brain cancer is what people get 99% of the time, while primary brain cancer only is about 1% of what most type people get” (National Cancer Institute, 2006). Benign do not contain cancer cells, which malignant do contain cancer cells.
Benign brain tumours normally can be removed, although they can grow back. They can press on sensitive areas of the brain cause serious problem for a person’s health. They can sometimes be life threatening. These tumours can become malignant, but rarely ever happens.
Malignant brain tumours are more serious then benign brain tumours. They grow very fast and invade the health brain tissue in that area. Cancer cells can break away from the tumor and spread to other parts of the body, but rarely happens. If it does spread it is called metastasis. When the tumor does not extend into the health tissue around it, it is called encapsulated. This tumor could be contained within a layer of tissue.
Brain tumours are often grouped by grade. Meaning from low grade (grade I) to high grade (grade IV). This normally is used to tumours when they are being examined under a microscope. The high grade tumours’ cells look more abnormal and grow much faster than the low grade tumours.
There are primary brain tumours and secondary brain tumours. Primary brain tumours start in the brain, while secondary brain tumours started somewhere else in the body and spread to the brain. An example is that the tumor could have started in the lungs and spread its way to the brain.
Gliomas are the most common type of brain tumor. There are several types of these gliomas. Astrocytoma is the tumor that comes from a star-shaped glial cell. In children they can come from any part of the brain, but in adults they normal come from the cerebrum. Brain stem glioma normal is from in children and middle-aged adults. Ependymoma comes from the central canal of the spinal cord and are normally found in children and young adults. Oligodendroglioma is very rare and comes from the fatty substance that covers and protects nerves. These normally occur in the cerebrum and are most common in middle-aged adults.
There are many other tumours that are not gliomas. The most common ones are Medulloblastoma, Meningioma, Schwannoma, Craniopharyngioma, Germ cell tumor, and the Pineal region tumor. Medulloblastoma normally found in the cerebellum and is most common in children. Meningioma is found in the meninges and normally grows very slow. Schwannoma comes from a Schwann cell that lines the nerve that controls balance and hear.
This tumor is normally found in adults. Craniopharyngioma is found at the bottom of the brain near the pituitary gland and is normally found in children. Germ cell tumor normally found in people under the age of thirty. Pineal region tumor this is a rare tumor that is found in or near the pituitary gland.
Doctors and medical researchers are not positive what causes brain tumours, but they do know that they are not contagious. They have discovered many risk factors. Brain tumours are more common in males then females. They are normally found in white people. They normally are found in children or people over the age of seventy. People who family has had gliomas can be more like to get cancer.
Finally exposure to radiation or certain chemicals at work, these chemicals are formaldehyde, vinyl chloride, and acryonitrile. Cell phones are also being researched as a cause to brain tumours. If a person has these risk factors doesn’t mean they will develop a brain tumor and it doesn’t mean if you do not have any of these risk factors that you won’t develop a brain tumor.
They are many symptoms of brain tumours, but the symptoms depend on the size, type, and location of the tumor. The most common symptoms are headaches, nauseam and changes in speech, vision or hearing. As well as problems balancing or walking, changes in moos or ability to concentrate, memory problems, seizures and numbness in limbs.
Doctors have many ways of diagnosing brain cancer. Some of the ways are a physical exam, neurologic exam, CT scan, MRI, angiogram, skull x-ray, spinal tap, myelogram, and biopsy. The doctor your general health for a physical exam. A neurologic exam the doctor checks your alertness, muscle strength, coordination, reflex and response to pain. CT scan s when an x-ray machine takes a bunch of pictures of your head, which they put a type of dye that the different parts of the brain show up in the picture.
MRI is a magnet connected to a computer to make detailed picture of the inside of the body. Angiogram is when dye is injected into the bloodstream, so that the brain comes up in the x-ray. Skull x-ray is when the doctor can check for calcium deposits in the brain or changes in the bone of the skull, which some brain tumours have.
Spinal tap is where the doctor removes a small sample of cerebrospinal fluid. It checks the fluid for cancer cells or signs of problems. Myelogram is basically an x-ray of the spine, so that the doctor can see if there a spinal tumor in the spinal cord. Biopsy is when they remove of tissue to look for tumor cells.
Before going to get a treatment, there are many ways to prepare for treatment. The patient and doctor can meet with each other and talk about the different ways. There are many tings that will determine the type of treatment, like type, location, size and grade of the tumor. Also sometimes doctors need to know if there was any cancer found in the cerebrospinal fluid.
“There are many questions that a patient might ask before the treatment begins. Some of these questions are: What type of brain tumor do i have? Is it benign or malignant? What are my treatment choices? Which so you recommend for me and why? What are the benefits of each kind of treatment? What are the risks and possible side effects of each treatment? What is the treatment likely to cost? How will treatment affect my normal activities? Would a clinical trial be appropriate for me? Can you help me find one?” (NCI, 2002)
Surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy are ways that patients can be treated for brain cancer, but in order to pick what type of way of treatment is best to be used is depended on the type and stage of the tumor. Also at any time during the disease, treatment can be put into effect to heal this type of tumours and relieve any pain. The kinds of treatment that can be used are symptom management, supportive care, and palliative care.
“Surgery is usual treatment for most brain tumours. Surgery to open the skull is called a craniotomy. It is performed under general anesthesia. Before surgery begins, the scalp is shaved. The surgeon then makes an incision in the scalp and uses a special type of saw to remove a piece of bone from the skull. After removing part or the entire tumor, the surgeon covers the opening in the skull with that piece of bone or with a piece of metal or fabric. The surgeon then closes the incision in the scalp." (NCI, 2002)
Surgery isn’t always available, depending on where the tumor is located in the brain because it could cause damage to the tissue of the brain. If this is the case, the patient will go through radiation or another type of treatment. “Radiation therapy uses high-energy rays to kill tumor cells. The radiation may come from x-rays, gamma rays, or protons. A large machine aims radiation at the tumor and the tissue close to it.
Sometimes the radiation may be directed to the entire brain or to the spinal cord” (NCI, 2002). After a patient under goes surgery they normally go into radiation therapy. This will eliminate tumor cells in a surrounding area. However, radiation therapy is often used in place of surgery when surgery is unavailable to the patient.
“PET Scan, also known as Positron Emission Tomography, provides a picture of the brains activity, rather than its structure, by measuring the rate at which a tumor absorbs glucose. The patient is injected with deoxyglucose that has been labeled with radioactive markers. The PET scan measures the brains activity and sends this information to a computer, which creates a live image. Doctors use PET scans to see the difference between scar tissue, recurring tumor cells, and necrosis.” (NBTF, 2007)
In order to protect the tissues around the tumor, doctors take several steps. These steps are Fractionation, Hyperfractionation, Stereotactic radiation therapy, 3-dimensional conformal radiation therapy, and proton beam radiation therapy. “Fractionation is radiation therapy usually is given five days a week for several weeks.
Hyperfractionation is when the patient gets smaller does of radiation two or three time a day instead of a larger amount once a day. Stereotactic radiation therapy is narrow beams of radiation are directed at the tumor from different angles. 3-dimensional conformal radiation therapy is when a computer creates a 3-dimensional image of the tumor and nearby brain tissue. Proton beam radiation therapy is the source of radiation is proton rather than x-says. The doctor aims beams at the tumor” (NCI, 2002).
Surgery can end up in results of the patient having headaches for days after the surgery, although, doctors will normally prescribe pain medication. Doctors and nurses are there for the patients to talk to about anything. Being weak or tired are common side affects of having surgery and recovery takes time.
These aren’t the only problems that are possible. Edema, which is when the brain has a build up of blood or cerebrospinal fluid, could happen. Steroids are often given to patients in order to reduce and eliminate swelling. The doctors put a shunt into the brain in order to remove pressure from the brain. This also drains the fluid in the brain to the abdomen. These commonly are used and in some case infections happen, where antibiotics are prescribed for the patient.
“A craniotomy is a major operation. The surgery may damage normal brain tissue, and edema may occur. Weakness, coordination problems, personality changes, and difficulty in speaking and thinking can result. Patients can also have seizures. In fact, for a short time after surgery, symptoms may be worse than before. Most of the side effects of surgery lessen or disappear with time” (A.P. John, 2003).
Surgery can damage tissue and cause serious problems to the brain. Problems of speaking, seeing, and thinking can come to so patients. The patient may also face numerous amounts of secrets as well as personal changes; however these problems do not last forever and should eventually go away. This may result in having physical, speech, or occupational therapy.
Another treatment is radiation therapy. This treatment may cause the patient to become nausea for several hours as well as becoming very tired at times. Although rest is important, the doctors recommend that the patient to stay active. Loss of hair is another side affect, although it normally grows back within a few months. The skin can also be affected from the radiation therapy. Some examples of this are redness to the ears and scalp as well as dryness.
Necrosis, which is the killing of brain tissue, is a side effect of radiation. Necrosis is very dangerous and can cause severe headaches, seizures and even death. Damage the pituitary gland is possible in children because of radiation, which could result in learning problems and could make the amount of time of growing and developing decrease. When chemotherapy and radiation are given same time can cause the side effect could become worse.
Although chemotherapy works as a treatment, there are many side effects, such as fever, chills, nausea, and loss of appetite. Help may be able to be given by a medicine prescribed by the patient’s doctor. Patients with implants of a drug which are watched incase of any signs for an infection. This happens after surgery and if infection is found, an antibiotic can be prescribed.
When a person get brain cancer, there body can somewhat shut down. They can become bedridden, which could cause bedsores and they could become go into a sleep for a long period of time. They could lose the ability to eat my mouth, where they would have to use a feeding tube. This makes it easier to get the medicine in. The medicine can cause the patient’s skin to become very delicate and tears & bruises easily.
When a person is diagnosed with a brain tumor it is important that they do not go through it alone. They need to have supportive care. They need this to control any problems they could have and to improve there daily life during treatment. They could also have additional treatment to take care of any pain from the brain tumor, as well as any additional things they may have. An example would be that a person might go to therapy because of emotional problems.
People who have brain tumours will often go to supportive care like steroids, Anticonvulsant medicine, or a shunt. Steroids are the most commonly used. It is used to stop the swelling in the brain. Anticonvulsant medicine is used to prevent the patient from having seizures. A shunt is used to release the fluid that is built up in the brain. The fluid is drained from the brain.
Rehabilitation is probably one of the most important things to do after having a brain tumor. The point of rehabilitation depends on the tumor as well as the person and how he or she is doing. The goal is to get the patient back to doing every day things as soon as possible. Sometime the best type of help is a therapist. There are three types of therapists: a physical therapist, speech therapist, and an occupational therapist.
A physical therapist is used when the patient has paralysis or when is weak and has problems with there balance. A speech therapist is used when the patient needs help talking or swallowing. An occupational therapist is there to help with every day activities, like eating, going to the bathroom, getting dressed and many more. Although when a child has a brain tumor, they might need different help, like a tutor because they often have learning problems and need extra help remembering things. These children who have special needs might have to go into specialized classes at their school.
Once a patient finishes rehabilitation they are not finished yet. They need to have regular checkups with the doctor. This way they can check for signs of the tumor coming back. These checkups aren’t like an ordinary check a person goes to, they will have physical and neurologic exams that will be examined by the doctors very carefully. On occasion the patients will have an MRI or a CT scan. Also the doctor will check how the shunt is working if the patient has one.
People who have diseases such as brain cancer need a lot of help, because it’s not easy to go through it. They often need help emotional and physically. They can normally turn to family, but when they can’t they often go to support groups and therapist. In the support groups they talk about what they are going through and try to help each other through it.
These support groups often act as a family and can help people by encouraging them not to give up and not to loss hope. These groups aren’t just for people who can leave where they are, they can attend these groups by talking over the phone and internet as well.
A lot of the time people with brain cancer aren’t always worry about themselves, but about there loved ones, their jobs, or continuing what they do every day. They also worry about their treatments as well as controlling the side effects, the time they are in hospitals, and their medical bills.
The doctors and nurse try to help the people as much as they can, whether answering questions or listening to them. People with brain cancer are advise to meet with a social worker, counselor, or someone from there parish. Social workers are a lot of help to adults who have brain cancer because they can answer question about things like financial aid, transportation, homecare and even emotional support.
Work Cited
