Brain tumors

Description:

Benign tumor of a brain - a pathological new growth in a brain from mature cells of different fabrics, according to tumor type.
  Malignant tumor of a brain - a pathological new growth in a brain which is capable to burgeon and destroy the next fabrics very quickly. It develops from the unripe cells of a brain or cells which got into a brain from other bodies with blood (innidiation).
In a brain several types of benign tumors can develop. They are called according to cells or fabrics which give them rise: shvannoma come from the schwannian cells forming covers around nerves; ependymomas - from the cells covering brain ventricles; meningiomas - from cells of a meninx (the fabrics surrounding a brain); adenomas - from ferruterous cells; an osteoma - from bone structures of a skull and a hemangioblastoma - from blood vessels. Some benign tumors of a brain (for example, cranyopharyngiomas, chordomas, germinomas, teratomas, dermoid cysts and angiomas) happen inborn.  Meningiomas are, as a rule, good-quality, but quite often grow again after removal. These tumors arise at women more often and usually develop in childbearing age, but can also develop in the childhood or at the age of 40-60 years. Symptoms and effects of development of these tumors depend on as far as they are great as they quickly grow and in what part of a brain are. If tumors are too big, they cause deterioration in intellectual functions, as at dementia.  
Malignant tumors of a brain, as a rule, represent metastasises of the malignant new growths developing in other part of a body. A breast cancer and lungs, the malignant melanoma and malignant diseases of blood, for example a leukosis and a lymphoma, are capable to extend on a circulatory bed and to get into a brain. Metastasises can arise in one or several areas of a brain.  Primary tumors of a brain grow from cells of the brain. Usually it is the gliomas which are formed of glial cells which surround and support neurons. Some gliomas are malignant, for example the multiformny glioblastoma which is most extended from them. Quickly growing anaplastic astrocytomas, astrocytomas more slowly growing and oligodendrogliomas belong to other malignant gliomas. Quite rare medulloblastomas are noted at children during the period preceding puberty. The sarcomas and adenocarcinomas which are formed not of nervous tissue meet infrequently.  Tumors of a brain arise with an equal frequency irrespective of a sex, but some of their types are more widespread among men, and others - among women. For the unknown reasons brain lymphoma, especially at patients with AIDS began a thicket to appear recently.  Despite treatment, only about 25% of people with malignant tumors of a brain live more than two years. At certain types of tumors the perspective is a little better, for example at astrocytomas and oligodendrogliomas the tumor usually does not resume the growth within 3-5 years after treatment. About 50% of the people treated concerning a medulloblastoma live more than 5 years after establishment of the diagnosis.  Treatment of a malignant tumor of a brain has the best perspectives at an anaplastic astrocytoma, than at a multiformny glioblastoma and also if the age of the patient does not exceed 45 years and if the most part of a tumor or all it can be removed surgically.

Reasons of tumors of a brain:

Risk factors of development of a tumor of a brain: Heredity.
Race. Brain tumors meet at persons of the European race more often (only the meningioma is more characteristic of persons of negroid race).
Age. More often the disease arises at persons 45 years are more senior (only the medulloblastoma meets at children's age more often).
Influence of radiation.
Chemical agents.

Symptoms of tumors of a brain:

Symptoms develop if brain fabric is destroyed or pressure upon a brain increased. They do not depend on whether the tumor of a brain is high-quality or malignant. However if the tumor of a brain represents a metastasis of cancer of other body, at the patient the symptoms connected with this disease are in addition noted. For example, lung cancer can be followed by cough and allocation
blood with a phlegm, and a breast cancer - formation of a node in it.  
Symptoms of a tumor of a brain depend on its size, growth rate and an arrangement. In one parts of a brain the tumor can reach the considerable size before any symptoms appear, in others - even the small tumor leads to emergence of heavy functional disturbances.  The headache usually is the first
brain tumor symptom though in most cases it is caused by other reasons. The headache at a brain tumor often recurs or disturbs constantly, without simplification. As a rule, it strong, can begin at the person who did not complain before of headaches, arises at night and remains when awakening. To
to other early symptoms of a tumor of a brain disturbances of balance and coordination, dizziness and doubling in eyes belong. Later symptoms can include nausea and vomiting, periodic fervescence, the accelerated or slowed down pulse and change of a respiration rate. Shortly before death usually there are sharp fluctuations of arterial pressure.  Some tumors of a brain cause emergence of spasms. They are more often noted at benign tumors (for example, meningiomas) and slowly growing rather malignant new growths (for example, astrocytomas), than at quickly growing malignant tumors, such as multiformny glioblastoma. The tumor can cause weakness, paralysis of a hand or leg on one side of a body and to influence sensitivity to high temperature, cold, pressure, a touch or a prick. Tumors are capable to influence hearing, sight and sense of smell also. Pressure upon a brain quite often causes changes of the personality, drowsiness, confusion of consciousness and breaks thinking. Such symptoms are extremely serious and demand the immediate address to the doctor.
Astrocytomas and oligodendrogliomas  of the Astrocytoma and oligodendroglioma
represent slowly growing tumors and are usually shown only by convulsive attacks. Their more malignant options (anaplastic astrocytomas and anaplastic oligodendrogliomas) can be followed by signs of dysfunction of a brain, for example weakness, an anesthesia and instability of gait. The most malignant astrocytoma - a multiformny glioblastoma - grows so quickly that it leads to increase in pressure in a head cavity, causing a headache and block and if
pressure is very high, that somnolence and a coma.  

Meningiomas.  
Benign tumors which develop from the meninx located around a brain cause various symptoms depending on where they grow. They can result in weakness or numbness, pristupoobrazny spasms, disorder of sense of smell, an exophthalmos (protrusion of an eyeglobe) and disturbance
sight. They are capable to cause loss of memory and block in elderly people, reminding Alzheimer's disease.

Hypophysis tumors.  
The hypophysis is gland, subjacent a brain. It manages activity of many closed glands. Hypophysis tumors, as a rule, high-quality also produce too many hormones that causes the following symptoms:  
surplus of a growth hormone leads to increase in growth (giantism) or disproportionate increase in the person, brushes, feet and a thorax (acromegalia)
excess of adrenocorticotropic hormone leads to Cushing's syndrome
excess of thyritropic hormone conducts to a hyperthyroidism
excess of prolactin leads to the termination of menstrual cycles (amenorrhea), causes formation of breast milk in women, not
nursing (galactorrhoea), and to increase in mammary glands at
men (gynecomastia)
Tumors of a hypophysis can suppress production of hormones some glands, gradually leading to reduction of content of these hormones in an organism. Among symptoms also headaches and loss of outside fields of vision of both eyes are noted.  Epiphysis tumors  the Epiphysis are the gland located in the central part of a brain. It manages biological rhythms of an organism, first of all a normal ratio of wakefulness and a dream. Epiphysis tumors which usually cause early puberty (germinative tumors) are most widespread among children. They can complicate outflow of liquid in spaces around a brain, leading to increase in a brain and skulls (hydrocephaly), and also to heavy disturbance of activity of a brain.

Diagnosis:

The doctor suspects a brain tumor if at the person any of symptoms, characteristic of it, is noted. Though dysfunction of a nervous system can be found already at neurologic survey, additional diagnostic procedures are necessary for specification of the diagnosis.  Usual X-ray inspection of a skull and brain gives not enough information for diagnosis of tumors of a brain (except for some cases of a meningioma or adenoma of a hypophysis). All types of new growths in a brain are well visible at the computer tomography (CT) or the magnetic and resonant tomography (MRT) which allow to determine their size and an exact arrangement. To specify a type of the brain tumor found at KT or MPT, special researches are necessary.  Hypophysis adenomas, as a rule, diagnose when they begin to squeeze an optic nerve. Blood analyses show change of contents in it of hypophyseal hormones. The tumor is usually found by means of MPT or KT.  Growth of some tumors also leads to change of concentration of hormones in blood, but it is not characteristic of the majority. To establish type of a tumor and to solve whether it is malignant, its biopsy has to be made (capture of a piece of fabric and its research under a microscope).  Sometimes malignant cells reveal at microscopic examination of the cerebrospinal liquid received at a lumbar puncture. The puncture is not carried out if there is a suspicion on significant increase in intracranial pressure as sharp change of pressure can cause a vklineniye - one of the most dangerous complications of a tumor of a brain. At a vklineniya increase in pressure in a head cavity leads to impression of brain fabric in an opening, subjacent skulls, and thus to compression of the lower part of a brain - a trunk. The vital functions managed by it are as a result broken: breath, cordial reductions and arterial pressure. If in time not to diagnose and to begin to treat this state, it gradually leads to development of a coma and by death.  The biopsy can be made during operation at which delete all tumor or its part. Sometimes tumors are located in the depth of a brain and are unavailable to the surgeon. In such cases the biopsy is carried out by means of the special device which allows to receive the three-dimensional image and to monitor the provision of a needle by means of which take cells from a tumor.

Treatment of tumors of a brain:

Treatment of tumors of a brain depends on their type and an arrangement. Many of them can be removed surgically without essential harm for brain tissues. However in certain cases it is difficult or it is impossible to make, without having damaged important structures of a brain that leads to partial paralysis, changes of sensitivity, weakness and decrease in intelligence. Nevertheless, if growth of a tumor threatens the vital departments of a brain, it needs to be removed. Even if surgical intervention cannot lead to radical treatment, operation brings a certain benefit: it allows to reduce the size of a tumor and symptoms caused by it, to define its type and to make the decision on use of other methods of treatment, for example radiation therapy.  Some benign tumors need also to be deleted surgically as their accrescence in limited space can cause heavy injury of a brain and lead to death. Meningiomas delete always if it is possible, and usually such operation takes place safely. However very small meningiomas at elderly people do not touch. Other benign tumors, for example shvannoma and ependymomas, in most cases treat similarly. Sometimes after operation appoint radiation therapy to destroy the remained tumor cells.  As a rule, for treatment of a tumor of a brain, especially malignant, combine operation, radiation therapy and chemotherapy. After removal of the most most part of a tumor begin radiation therapy. Radiation seldom destroys all tumor of a brain, but allows to reduce it and further to control its growth within many months or even years. For treatment of some tumors of a brain use also chemotherapy. Both metastatic, and primary malignant new growths can answer it.  Increase in intracranial pressure - extremely serious state which demands immediate medical care. To reduce pressure and to prevent a vklineniye, usually enter intravenously drugs, for example Mannitolum and corticosteroids. Sometimes use the special device allowing to measure pressure in a head cavity and to adjust treatment.  Treatment of the metastasises which got into a brain substantially depends on where primary tumor is located. For their destruction often use radiation therapy. Surgical removal makes sense only if the separate metastasis is revealed. In addition to traditional methods apply some experimental types of treatment including chemotherapy, introduction to a tumor of radioactive material and radio-frequency influences.