The discussion of brain tumors is very broad because there are many different types of tumors that may affect the human brain. It should be noted at the outset that not all brain tumors are cancerous. When it comes to brain tumors, many people say the patient has cancer or has brain cancer and nothing can be done about it; While brain tumors have benign and malignant types, we also sometimes encounter tumors that metastasize to the brain from other parts of the body and have different symptoms. The most common symptom of a brain tumor is a headache, but not everyone who has a headache should worry about a brain tumor. Headache is a symptom that covers a wide range of diseases. A small proportion of headaches are related to brain tumors. However, the most important and common symptom of a brain tumor in adults is headache. Because children can not clearly express the symptoms of the disease, the tumor will be more recognizable in children with the help of cognitive, behavioral symptoms, hypothermia (which is related to hydrocephalus) or motor symptoms and other cases.
Therefore, in cases where the patient has had a headache for a long time and has not responded to treatment, it is best to have an imaging of his brain (such as a CT scan or MRI) to take the necessary steps to treat the patient based on the images obtained. Be. The best way to diagnose a brain tumor is an MRI, which helps to pinpoint the exact location of the tumor, the extent of the tumor, and whether it is malignant or benign. Based on these data, appropriate treatment strategies can be considered.
An important point to note in the treatment of brain tumors is the availability of advanced surgical technology and equipment. Everything that is needed for brain tumor surgery is available in our country, and we are not inferior to developed countries in this field. There is no shortage of microsurgery equipment (microscopic surgery) or devices such as navigation that guides the exact location of the tumor, nerve monitoring (nerve monitoring) and other necessary tools in our country, and brain tumor surgeries in Iran with the highest Quality is possible.
Since the discussion of brain tumors is very broad, here are three types of the most common tumors.
One of the benign tumors is meningioma, which may be familiar to you. Meningioma does not originate in the tissues and cells of the brain itself and originates in the tissues around the brain. In fact, the tumor puts pressure on the brain tissue itself, causing headaches and swelling in that area. Although meningioma is a benign type, its size and location greatly affect how surgery is performed. If the tumor has adhesions to major arteries in the brain or to vital parts of the brain (which control body movements, alertness, and wakefulness), surgery on the patient can be very dangerous and risky.
In general, if the meningioma can be completely removed and the nourishing vessels destroyed, the tumor will not come back and no further treatment is needed. The patient recovers completely after surgery, and there is no need for radiation therapy (radiotherapy) or chemotherapy. On the other hand, if the tumor cannot be completely removed, there is a possibility of its growth and recurrence.
One of the most common malignant tumors is the glioma tumor. Gliomas originate in the brain tissue itself. Unfortunately, these tumors have a high chance of recurrence, but they can be diagnosed from grade 1 to grade 4.
Grade 4 Tucorum glioma is a tumor that, regardless of its size and shape, is very likely to recur if it is operated on; This is a deadly brain tumor known as a very malignant tumor. In the lower stages of the tumor, if the surgeon is able to completely remove the tumor and then fully comply with radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and the things considered by fellow radiotherapists and oncologists, the patient may recover despite the malignancy of these tumors.
Another type of tumor that is common in the brain is metastatic tumors. These tumors have a different origin than the brain; In other words, they do not have a brain origin and reach the brain from cancerous tumors in other parts of the body. It is very important to determine the initial origin of these tumors. Sometimes the original origin is quite obvious; For example, a person has a history of lung cancer or breast cancer and presents with headaches or other symptoms. Upon examination, we may find that there is metastasis in the patient’s brain.
Sometimes a person comes up with a tumor that is very similar in appearance and shape to metastatic brain tumors. In this case, the tumor is removed and then sent to the pathology. Once the results of the pathology tests are known, we will find out if the tumor was definitely metastatic. We must look for the source of the tumor according to the pathology or other tests so that if a person has cancer, he or she can begin the process of diagnosis and treatment.
Another important point about metastatic tumors is whether the cause is a treatable tumor. Sometimes different cancers of the body can be treated and sometimes not. It should also be noted how many of these tumors metastasize to the brain. All of these are effective in treating these types of tumors.
