Learning Corner
BRAIN AND
SPINAL TUMORS: THE BASICS
If you are trying
to cope with a tumor of the brain or spinal cord
(together called the central nervous system),
RIBSTF wants to help. We provide information and
support for patients and their family members.
On this page, we answer some basic questions
that may arise after the first hint of a tumor.
I just
heard the diagnosis, and I’m scared. Is the
situation hopeless?
Many tumors of the central
nervous system stay under control for years with
treatment. Indeed, some patients enjoy a full life after
diagnosis. We wish we could say that everyone
experiences good outcomes, but for some people these
tumors cause disability or death.
How well a person
fares after being diagnosed with a brain or
spinal tumor depends on a number of things,
including:
- The type and
location of the tumor
- How abnormal
the cells that form the tumor look
- How quickly,
or aggressively, they grow and spread
- The person’s
overall health and level of functioning at
the time of diagnosis
- The
treatment received
A tumor means cancer, right?
Actually, a person who has a tumor might not
have cancer. “Tumor” simply means an abnormal
mass of cells. Some tumors contain cancerous
cells; others do not.
To understand how
tumors and cancer develop, you need to know that
many of the cells in our body are constantly
growing and splitting to form new ones. One cell
becomes two, two change into four, and so on.
When cells grow old, they die, and new ones
replace them.
All cells contain
code that tells them what to do, but sometimes
mistakes appear in it. As a result, the abnormal
cells may grow and divide wildly, thereby making
other unruly cells that do the same. Less often,
the cells simply outlive their usefulness. In
any case, the cells may then form a tumor.
Cancer results when the tumor cells grow so fast
that they threaten to harm tissue to which they
spread.
My doctor
said I need surgery to save me from a
life-threatening tumor. Can a benign tumor be
that dangerous?
Many
patients and relatives ask, “Is it benign or
malignant?” They hope for “benign,” having heard
that benign tumors do less harm than malignant
ones. However, the distinction between benign
and malignant matters less for tumors that start
in the brain or spine than in other body parts.
While both benign
and malignant tumors can grow, benign ones stay
separate from nearby tissue because a “wrapper”
surrounds them. As long as they stay benign,
they do not spread to distant sites. Treatment
can usually remove them completely.
Even so, in the
enclosed spaces of the brain and spinal cord,
benign tumors can cause big problems. They can
press against the skull, spinal cord, or nerves.
They can block the flow of blood or
cerebrospinal fluid, which cushions the brain
and spinal cord. They can hurt nerves or other
tissue. In these ways, so-called “benign” tumors
can steal patients’ lives or abilities.
Furthermore, they sometimes turn malignant.
Unlike benign
tumors, malignant ones lack clear edges and tend
to invade deep into nearby tissue. This makes it
hard to remove them or even to know whether
treatment got rid of every last bit of them.
Also, they are more likely than benign tumors to
return. In most of the body, malignant tumors
often spread far from where they started, but
those that arise in the brain or spinal cord
rarely go beyond the central nervous system.
More commonly,
cancer in other parts of the body spreads to the
central nervous system. The spreading process,
called “metastasizing,” starts when a cancerous
cell breaks off from the original tumor and
travels to another spot. There it may make new
cells and, with them, grow into a malignant
tumor. Cancer otherwise controlled by treatment
may even escape to the brain and thrive there,
perhaps because most of the usual
cancer-fighting drugs cannot enter the brain
easily.
My doctor
said I have a primary tumor. Is that good or
bad?
“Primary” simply refers to a tumor at its
original site. For instance, if imaging shows a
tumor in the spine that began there, doctors
would call it a “primary spinal tumor.” They
would dub any new tumors that might grow from it
“secondary” or “metastatic.”
Typically, metastatic cancer in the central nervous system
results from wayward cells roaming there from
other parts of the body, such as a lung, breast,
or kidney. This can cause severe, even deadly,
effects on the brain. To help patients live
longer and better, doctors tend to aggressively
treat tumors that spread to the brain.
What is meant by
tumor grade? Is it the same as its stage?
Some brain or
spinal tumors receive a grade, a shorthand way
of saying how likely they are to grow and
spread. A doctor called a pathologist gives the
grade after studying tissue from the tumor
through a microscope. High-grade tumors not only
look stranger than lower-grade ones, they act
more aggressively.
In contrast to
grading, staging describes the actual degree of
spreading, based on information from multiple
sources. No standard staging method exists for
brain or spinal tumors because they rarely
spread beyond the central nervous system.
However, tumors that have spread to the brain or
spine are automatically deemed stage IV cancer.
I feel totally
overwhelmed. What now?
ke you, many patients and caregivers feel
overwhelmed by the challenges posed by these conditions.
While everyone copes in their own way, learning about
these tumors and sharing your burden with other people
can help. With that in mind, we invite you to explore
our site. We hope it brings you a dose of comfort and
clarity. We wish you well. |
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