General Health Many people ask whether or not mobile phones cause cancer and more specifically, brain tumours. hot from cold on your skin (sensation tests) . • Eye test – the optic nerve, which connects the eye to the brain, tends to bulge a little if a tumour is present. • CT scan – three dimensional x-rays. A dye will be injected so that anything unusual will show more clearly. • Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) – similar to a CT scan, but magnetism instead of x-rays is used to create a picture. This test will almost certainly show up any brain tumour. • X-rays and blood tests – to test your general health. • Angiogram – injected dye is x-rayed as it flows through the blood vessels of your brain. This is not done for all types of brain tumours. There may be other scans and tests to help diagnose a tumour. These will depend on the type of tumour and whether it has spread to other parts of the body. Treatment for Brain Tumours Treatment aims to remove the tumour, or at least slow its growth and relieve the symptoms. Some of the treatment options include: • Surgery – some tumours can be completely removed. In other cases, a tumour may have spread throughout the brain and may be very close to important structures in the brain. In this case, only pieces of it can be removed. • Radiotherapy – is used to kill cancer cells, or in the case of a benign tumour it can be used to halt the growth of the tumour. In children, low doses of radiation are used because x-rays can slow a child’s development and growth. Treatment is carefully planned to do as little harm as possible to normal body tissues. • Chemotherapy – anti-cancer drugs are used to stop the cancer cells from multiplying. Chemotherapy is rarely used for adults, but often used for children because of the possible side effects of radiotherapy. • Steroid therapy – medication is used to reduce the swelling around the tumour. This does not treat the tumour itself, but does help to relieve the swelling and pressure caused by the tumour. • Complementary and alternative therapies – can improve quality of life when used alongside conventional cancer treatment. All treatments have side effects. These will vary depending on the type of treatment. Many side effects are temporary, but some may be permanent. Spinal Cord Tumours These are rarer than primary brain tumours. There are a few different types of spinal cord tumours. The success of treatment will depend on the type of tumour. Secondary Brain Tumours Many malignant brain tumours are ‘secondary cancers’. This means they developed from a cancer that began elsewhere in the body. Cancers of the lung, breast, kidney, stomach, bowel (colon), and skin (melanoma) can all spread to the brain. The symptoms of secondary brain tumours are similar to those of a primary tumour, but they are treated differently. When a Cure is Not Possible If brain cancer has been diagnosed in its later stages, the cancer may have spread to the point where a cure is no longer possible. Treatment then focuses on improving quality of life by relieving the symptoms (this is called ‘palliative’ treatment), using medications to relieve pain, nausea and vomiting. pm Pindara M 24 agazine Summer | 2014/15
Pindara Private Hospital Magazine - Issue Three
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