Neetu (name changed) was shocked when doctors told her that her problem of blurred vision and difficulty in reading was a symptom of brain tumour. By the time, she consulted a neurosurgeon, the ailment had developed into brain cancer.
There are many such instances that reveal that people are not aware about the symptoms of brain tumour. The World Brain Tumour Day will be observed on Wednesday. The day is meant to spread awareness o disease among the masses. Doctors say there are two types of brain tumour - benign and malignant. Benign brain tumours are slow-growing that can be removed or treated if in an accessible location. Malignant tumours are rapidly growing that invade or infiltrate and destroy normal brain tissue. Some benign brain tumours may become malignant.
As far as World Brain Tumour Day is concerned, the German Brain Tumour Association announced the World Brain Tumour Day in 2000 as an international commemoration day to stimulate global awareness about brain tumour.
According to medical experts, this disease can happen at any age group, although mostly people above 35 years suffer from it and usually after struggling for five years one-third patients die.
A brain tumour is an abnormal mass of tissue in which some cells grow and multiply uncontrollably, apparently unregulated by the mechanisms that control normal cells. The growth of a tumour takes up space within the skull and interferes with normal brain activity. A tumour can cause damage by increasing pressure in the brain, by shifting the brain or pushing against the skull, and by invading and damaging nerves and healthy brain tissue. The location of a brain tumour influences the type of symptoms that occur. This is because different functions are controlled by different parts of the brain. Brain tumours rarely metastasize (spread) to other parts of the body outside of the central nervous system (CNS). The CNS includes the brain and spinal cord.
The common symptoms of the disease include headache, nausea and vomiting. Seizures or convulsions, difficulty in thinking, speaking, or finding words along with personality changes, weakness or paralysis, loss of balance, vision changes, confusion and disorientation and memory loss are other symptoms.
The standard treatments for brain tumours include surgery, radiation therapy, and/or chemotherapy. In general, radiation and chemotherapy are used as secondary treatment for tumours that cannot be managed using only surgery.