The list of the most serious and dangerous diseases known today includes brain cancer. Every year, this ailment kills hundreds of lives around the world. Despite a lot of research and development in this area, a 100% effective treatment has not yet been found. This is explained by some features of the disease. However, even in those cases when a full recovery does not occur, it is possible to achieve a long remission.
Disease concept
Brain cancer is a malignant tumor that affects different departments and tissues. Among all oncological diseases, the frequency of its occurrence is 5-6%. Malignant tumors differ from benign tumors with a high growth rate and the ability to switch to other organs. Depending on which part of the brain is affected by abnormal cells, there are several diagnoses in medicine. All of them belong to the large collective category of “brain cancer”.
By the type of occurrence, this disease happens:
- the primary - the focus of spread is a brain tumor (this variety is found only in 1.5% of cases);
- secondary - secondary cancer is said to be in cases where the tumor is located in other organs and gives metastases to the brain.
According to statistics, patients with this diagnosis belong to different age categories, but most often brain cancer is diagnosed in older people and in children.
Causes of Brain Cancer
The vast majority of cases are secondary cancer. It occurs due to the spread of malignant cells into the brain from other organs. In other words, the risk of developing this type of cancer increases significantly if the patient has oncology of the breast, kidneys, rectum, lungs, and skin. There are metastases from other organs, but this is much less common.
As for the primary type, doctors cannot name the exact causes of brain cancer. At the same time, several factors were identified that, possibly, provoke the appearance of pathology. Among them:
- age over 50 years - it is no secret that age-related changes are possible in the cells and tissues of the body during aging;
- genetic predisposition - the risks increase slightly if close relatives are diagnosed with brain cancer;
- consequences from exposure to radioactive radiation (this may be the action of nuclear weapons, radiotherapy, and others);
- work with some chemical compounds.
Doctors note that those who have many bad habits are also at risk, including tobacco smoking, excessive consumption of alcohol, and narcotic substances.
Types of malignant brain tumors
As previously noted, brain cancer is the collective name for all malignant tumors localized in brain tissue. Among them are:
- neuroma (affects the cranial nerves);
- glioma (occurs in nerve tissues);
- sarcoma (grows in the cells of connective tissue);
- pituitary adenoma (glandular tissues are involved in the process);
- meningioma (a tumor of the meninges).
How does brain cancer manifest
Unlike many other types of cancer, a malignant brain tumor begins to manifest itself almost immediately after the onset. In this case, the symptoms are divided into:
- focal (primary) - these symptoms of brain cancer are associated with the growth of the tumor, its pressure on the brain tissue and their destruction (this symptomatology varies depending on the location of the neoplasm);
- cerebral - appear a little later and are explained by circulatory disorders and intracranial hypertension (increased intracranial pressure).
Focal symptoms
It is quite difficult to identify the main symptoms of brain cancer in this case, since they largely depend on which parts of the brain are affected by the tumor.
Sensitivity is disturbed. This is expressed in a loss of perception of those irritants that affect the skin (these are thermal, tactile and painful). A little later, the patient may not perceive the position of his body in space.
Vegetative disorders appear. Patients complain of rapid fatigue, constant weakness, dizziness. Your doctor may notice frequent fluctuations in blood pressure and heart rate. Often observed in brain cancer and high temperature.
Disorders of motor activity. With damage to the pathways responsible for the transmission of impulses of motor activity, patients often experience paralysis and paresis. In this case, both individual parts (arms, legs) and the whole body may fail.
The occurrence of epileptic seizures. The center of stagnant excitement formed in the cerebral cortex often leads to convulsive seizures.
Vision problems. In the event that the tumor is located in the area of the quadruple or optic nerve, the signal from the retina to the cerebral cortex does not arrive correctly (or does not arrive at all). With this development of the disease, partial or complete loss of vision occurs. Possible signs of brain cancer include an inability to perceive the movement of objects or to recognize written language.
Partial or total hearing loss. Such symptoms appear when the auditory nerve is damaged. As a result, the patient loses the ability to recognize speech and sounds.
Coordination problems. Coordination in space is the responsibility of the midbrain and cerebellum, therefore, when they are affected by a malignant tumor, the coordination of movements is completely disrupted in humans. His gait becomes shaky and unsteady, without visual control, the patient can not perform accurate actions.
The appearance of hallucinations. These phenomena are usually quite elementary and do not carry any semantic load. So, the patient can see a bright light for a long time, smell strong odors or hear loud monotonous sounds.
Violation of psychomotor phenomena. Such symptoms of brain cancer can occur in different volumes: there is distraction, severe irritability, memory and attention are sharply worsened. In especially severe cases, the patient completely loses the ability to navigate in space and time, does not identify himself as a person.
Manifestation of cerebral symptoms
Such signs of brain cancer may appear a little later, at a time when the tumor reaches a significant size and provokes an increase in intracranial pressure.
Dizziness. With a decrease in blood circulation and compression of the tissues of the cerebellum, dizziness becomes a fairly common occurrence. Patients note that even at rest, there is a feeling that the body is turning or moving in any direction.
Headache. This symptom is considered one of the characteristic signs of brain oncology. Moreover, headaches in brain cancer are significantly different from ordinary ones - they are more intense, permanent and practically do not subside after taking conventional non-narcotic analgesics.
Nausea and vomiting not associated with food intake. Typically, the cause of this condition is increased intracranial pressure (with brain cancer this is a common occurrence). In especially severe cases, the patient is not even able to take water and food, as any foreign object, if it enters the root of the tongue, instantly causes vomiting.
The stages of brain cancer
The period of development and growth of a malignant tumor (starting from its very appearance) in medicine is usually divided into 4 stages. Brain cancer (like all others) is differentiated depending on the size of the tumor and the presence of metastases. Under metastases understand the spread of malignant cells from the primary focus to other organs (they can be both close and distant).
1st stage. During this period, a slow growth of the tumor is observed, its size is still very small and does not exceed a few millimeters. The characteristic symptoms of brain cancer may not appear at all, but light dizziness, slight neurological disorders may occur.
2 stage. This category includes malignant neoplasms that have entered the phase of active growth. The size of the tumor reaches several cm, while the cells go beyond the tissue in which they were originally (the tumor is growing in neighboring brain regions). Symptoms of brain cancer are more pronounced: nausea, dizziness, minor hearing impairment, vision.
3 stage. The tumor reaches a fairly large size and continues to grow rapidly. The surrounding brain tissue is involved. In most cases, metastases are observed at this stage of the development of the disease. The patient complains of numerous focal and cerebral symptoms.
4 stage. This stage includes the period of the disease in which malignant cells spread throughout the brain (or for the most part). In addition to the focal symptoms of brain cancer, the patient has severe headaches, sudden weight loss, a depressed state and increased fatigue.
Diagnostic procedures
If one or more symptoms appear, the patient should contact the clinic as soon as possible. At the first stage, the examination is carried out by a neurologist. Its task is to identify pathology and locate the damaged area by characteristic signs.
Primary reception. During the first appointment, the doctor examines the patient’s medical history, collects data about complaints and health status. Various medical tests are usually used to identify pathological conditions, for example, a test for the presence of a knee reflex, sensitivity of the skin, muscle strength, level of vision and hearing, a sense of memory and coordination.
MRI for brain cancer, more precisely, if you suspect this ailment is a mandatory procedure. Such a hardware study makes it possible to check the state of the brain and to identify the location and size of the tumor. Contrast radiography is another diagnostic method that can complement the picture of the disease.
Encephalogram. This examination allows you to track the work of the brain and identify those problems that are present in a particular section of the brain.
Biopsy. This analysis is prescribed last and only if a tumor was detected during the examination. Using a biopsy, the histologist can identify the cell structure of the neoplasm. In other words, it becomes clear whether this tumor is benign or malignant.
Brain cancer treatment
It is much more difficult to deal with this type of oncology than with a tumor of other organs. In this case, an integrated approach is applied, including surgery, chemotherapy, radio irradiation and radiosurgery. The task of doctors is not only to eliminate a malignant neoplasm, but also to prevent its reappearance. However, in the early stages of brain cancer, treatment is faster, and the percentage of recovery is higher.
Surgery is the main way to treat a tumor. During it, the surgeon will have to remove the abnormal cells in full, but this approach is not always possible. This is especially true in cases where malignant cells have already infected a large area of brain tissue. In some cases, chemotherapy or radiation is prescribed before surgery to reduce the volume of the tumor.
Radiotherapy. This method of treatment is based on the effects of radioactive substances on body tissues. Pathological cells have an increased sensitivity to such an effect, so their structure is destroyed, leading to the death of the tumor. Radiotherapy is prescribed in courses, the duration of which depends on the stage of the disease and the size of the neoplasm. Such treatment is effective before and after surgery.
Stereotactic surgery. This treatment is a more modern form of radiosurgery. It differs from the classical approach by local impact. In other words, a beam with active particles acts directly on the tumor, almost without affecting healthy tissue. This allows you to several times reduce side effects and increase effectiveness.
Chemotherapy. Under this name, treatment with strong drugs is hidden, the effect of which causes a disruption in the functioning of malignant cells and their gradual destruction. The doctor selects medicines individually. It can be intravenous drugs or tablets, take them in courses. Such treatment is quite effective, but it has many side effects.
Recovery period. In addition to treatment, patients require a long recovery course for brain cancer: diet, visiting a speech therapist, psychologist, special physical exercises to restore motor activity. In some cases, even after a course of treatment, people have epileptic seizures and convulsions. For this reason, doctors may prescribe regular medications.
Features nutrition. During treatment, the patient complains of a complete lack of appetite, however, nutrition should be regular and carefully balanced. This is necessary to replenish vitality and fight the disease. Cereals must be present in the diet, as many vegetables and fruits as possible, fish and lean meat. At the same time, there are also such products that it is better to completely abandon. These are smoked meats, spicy and salty dishes, sweets.
Brain Oncology Forecast
For each case, the prognosis of treatment depends on several factors, including: the stage of the disease, the presence of metastases, the age of the patient, and the location of the neoplasm. With timely treatment (stage 1 and 2 of cancer), survival for 5 years is 70-80%. If treatment was started at stages 3 or 4, then 10-30% of patients have a chance of five-year survival.
In other words, for the effectiveness of treatment requires not only a comprehensive treatment, but also the timely detection of the disease. What should everyone remember? Brain cancer is a serious disease that is difficult to treat. In order to protect yourself as much as possible, you need to take your own health as seriously as possible and, if you feel unwell, seek medical help as soon as possible.