Brain Tumor Symptoms in Adults
Brain tumors are masses of cells within the brain that do not function or grow as normal cells. In adults, the presence of a brain tumor can result in a wide variety of symptoms; these symptoms are based on whether the growing cells are cancerous or non-cancerous, in what part of the brain the tumor is located and the size of the growth. Diagnosis is partly based on the occurrence of certain symptoms, and treatments for different types of brain tumors depends on many factors.
Definition
Normal cells grow, divide and perform their specialized functions for discrete periods of time. Cancer cells differ from normal cells in that they grow abnormally fast, do not stop dividing and proliferating into new abnormal cells and perform none of the specialized functions of normal cells. As cancer cells divide and grow into a larger mass, they invade surrounding tissues and prevent healthy cells from functioning properly. In a brain tumor, would normally function as brain cells have, usually due to damaged DNA, stopped acting as normal brain cells should.
Types
There are three main types of brain tumors that occur in adults: gliomas, schwannomas and meningiomas. All three types can be either benign (masses that do not invade other body tissues) or malignant (masses of that aggressively spread to surrounding tissues and organs). Gliomas are the most common form of adult brain tumor and include tumors that occur in the brain's supportive glial cells. Menigiomas are tumors of the meningial tissue surrounding the spinal cord and brain. Schwannomas affect the sheath cells covering the brain's nerve cells.
Symptoms
In adults, brain tumor symptoms will vary depending on the size, location and type of the growth. The most common symptoms are severe and frequent headaches, blurred vision, vomiting and nausea. Other symptoms are dependent on the part of the brain that the tumor is affecting; these symptoms can include the abnormal dilation of one pupil, numbness or weakness on one side of the body, sudden problems with balance and coordination, difficulty speaking, dramatic personality changes and sudden onset of seizures in a person who has no prior history of epileptic seizures.
Diagnosis
While some symptoms alone can assist doctors with a brain tumor diagnosis, a brain scan and biopsy are usually needed to determine the exact location and type of tumor present. CT scans and MRI scans are used to identify the tumor's size and location, while a specialized biopsy, known as a stereotactic biopsy, is needed to determine the tumor's type. In a stereotactic biopsy, a small hole is drilled through the skull, and a biopsy needle is used to obtain a sample of the tumor.
Treatment
There are three main treatment options for adults with brain tumors: chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery. Patients commonly undergo a combination of these treatments, usually beginning with a surgery to remove as much of the tumor as possible, followed with chemotherapy or radiation therapy to destroy and slow any remaining abnormal cells.
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