Brain Tumor Treatments

Patients with brain tumors have a variety of treatment options. The particular treatment that each patient receives depends on several characteristics of the tumor, including:
  • Location: Which part of the brain is affected?
  • Size: How large is the tumor?
  • Stage: How aggressive is the tumor and how far has it progressed?
  • Type: Is it a primary or secondary (metastasized) tumor?
The treatment may also depend on the age and wishes of the patient; some patients choose to be more involved in the treatment decisions. A patient also usually has the option to get a second opinion from another doctor if he is uncertain about the treatment plan his primary physician or surgeon suggests. Each type of treatment has risks, and survival rates depend of a variety of factors.

Brain Tumor Treatments

Brain tumor treatments may involve the use of one or more of the following techniques:
  • Chemotherapy
  • Craniotomy
  • Radiation therapy
  • Radiosurgery
  • Surgery
  • Targeted drug therapy.

Brain Tumor Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy uses drugs to kill tumor cells. However, as a treatment for a brain tumor, chemotherapy is not one of the primary choices. It works by stopping cell reproduction, but brain cells divide very slowly, so brain tumor chemotherapy is often not as useful as other treatments.

Brain Tumor Surgery

If the tumor is in a favorable location and the patient is in good health, brain tumor surgery is often the primary treatment of choice for brain tumor treatment. A craniotomy involves temporarily removing a portion of the skull to gain access to brain tissue for tumor removal. This type of invasive surgery is necessary for some larger types of tumors, and may be able to remove all infected cells in the brain.

Radiation Treatment

Radiation therapy, or "radiotherapy," is a treatment that uses high-energy particles—such as x-rays, gamma rays or protons—to kill tumor cells directly. This type of therapy is often used in conjunction with surgery to kill hidden cells left behind after removal of the primary tumor. During radiosurgery, several external beams of radiation are directed at the tumor from different angles for a very intense and localized radiation treatment.

Targeted Drug Therapy

Many of the targeted drug therapies available to treat brain tumors are still in the clinical trial stage. Most of these drugs kill cancer cells by taking advantage of their abnormalities or weaknesses. Still other drugs work to cut off the blood supply to the tumor, killing cancerous cells.
Very new treatments are available to a small percentage of patients who are not responding to other methods. These clinical trials are experimental treatments to determine if a certain new drug is effective. For treatment of a brain tumor, alternative medicine is not widely considered as an effective option, other than to help patients cope with side effects and recovery.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Nutrition & Cystic Fibrosis

Image
Cystic fibrosis is a genetic disorder that affects the body's exocrine glands, including the various mucus and sweat glands found throughout the body. Since cystic fibrosis is an inherited disease, most people with the disease are usually diagnosed by their first birthday. The most common problems due to cystic fibrosis are related to the lungs and the digestive system. In the lungs, the mucus produced by the various exocrine glands is abnormally thick, creating obstructions in the breathing passageways and, eventually, damage to the lungs. Furthermore, the thick mucus creates an ideal breeding ground for various bacteria and other organisms, which results in frequent lung infections, damage to the lungs and, ultimately, respiratory failure. Cystic fibrosis also affects the pancreas. The pancreas is responsible for producing various enzymes to aid in digestion, but in cystic fibrosis the pancreas is unable to excrete sufficient amounts of pancreatic enzymes to help digest foo
Keep reading

Pernicious Anemia: Vitamin B12 Deficiency

Image
Anemia  is a blood disorder in which the number of red blood cells or the amount of hemoglobin is lower than normal. With fewer red blood cells or hemoglobin, insufficient oxygen is delivered to the body 's cells. Pernicious anemia  is a type of anemia caused by a deficiency in vitamin B12. In pernicious anemia, the lack of vitamin B12 is due to the body 's inability to produce enough  intrinsic factor , a protein necessary for the absorption of vitamin B12. Pernicious anemia is a type of  megaloblastic anemia . Megaloblastic anemia is defined as, "a blood disorder characterized by anemia, with red blood cells that are larger than normal, usually resulting from a deficiency of folic acid or of vitamin B12 .  " (U.S. National Library of Medicine) Pernicious anemia by any other name . . . Pernicious anemia is known by a number of other names, including: macrocytic achylic anemia congenital pernicious anemia juvenile pernicious anemia vitamin B12 deficienc
Keep reading

Atresia of the Gastrointestinal Tract

Atresia , a closure or absence of a natural passage or orifice in the body, is a birth defect that can affect many parts of the body. In the case of gastrointestinal atresia, the passage of food through various digestive organs can be blocked, preventing the body from processing and extracting nutrients from food, and from excreting waste. Several types of gastrointestinal artresia have been identified. Esophageal Atresia The esophagus is the tube that connects the mouth and throat to the stomach. When you chew and swallow food, it travels down the esophagus for digestion in the stomach. Several types of esophageal atresia exist. In some cases, the esophagus narrows significantly, making it difficult for food to pass through. In most cases, however, the esophagus ends and does not connect to the stomach. Some babies with esophageal atresia may also have a tracheoesophageal fistula, or an abnormal connection between the esophagus and the trachea (windpipe). A baby may choke du
Keep reading