Are you aware of the signs and symptoms of brain tumors? Have you heard about GammaTile Therapy for brain tumors? Experts reveal lesser-known facts about brain tumor on World Brain Tumor Day 2023.
Every year, June 8 is dedicated as World Brain Tumor Day in order to raise public awareness about brain tumors as well as provide support to affected individuals. Early diagnosis and therapeutic interventions can make a significant difference in the management of brain tumors, but early signs of a brain tumor are often ignored and hence treatment is delayed. Moreover, there are a lot of myths and misconception about brain tumor among the general population. On World Brain Tumor Day 2023, medical experts have highlighted some lesser-known facts about brain tumor.
Early signs of brain tumor
Dr. Komal Prasad, Senior Consultant, Neurosurgery, Mazumdar Shaw Medical Center, Narayana Health City, Bangalore, highlighted the importance of raising awareness about the early signs of a brain tumor. These include:
- Persistent headaches that are different from your usual pattern
- Unexplained seizures
- Gradual or sudden changes in vision or hearing
- Difficulty speaking or understanding language
- Constant dizziness or imbalance and
- Unexplained nausea or vomiting.
“While these signs can be subtle and nonspecific, it’s important not to ignore them,” said Dr. Prasad.
Talking about the management of brain tumors, he stated, “Maintain a balanced diet, engage in regular exercise, manage stress levels, and get sufficient restful sleep. Early intervention can make a significant difference in the management of brain tumors. So, listen to your body, trust your instincts, and seek prompt medical attention.”
Brain Tumor in Children
Childhood brain tumors are the second most common type of cancer in children and hence a leading cause of morbidity and mortality, said Dr. Saurav Samantray, Senior Senior Paediatricurgery, NH SRCC Children’s Hospital, Mumbai.
He also wants people to know that many childhood brain tumors can be treated safely with good outcomes.
Dr. Samantray added, “Recent advances in neurosurgical techniques and adjuvant therapy have made it possible to treat many of them safely and with good outcomes. Surgery when done in a planned and meticulous fashion by an experienced team can give very good results even in infants. This team comprises of Paediatric Neurosurgeons, Paedaitric Anaesthetists, Paediatric ICU experts and Paediatric Neuro-Oncologists. Advances in Histopathological tools have made it possible to determine specific molecular profiles of various tumours and hence opened the way for targeted therapy.”
He mentioned the case of a 16-month-old child with brain tumor who they recently treated at NHSRCC Children’s Hospital.
The child had a very large tumour in the part of the brain called cerebellum, which is just above the neck. This tumour was compressing the brainstem which is the seat of breathing, heart function and consciousness. The tumour also involved many delicate nerves which control swallowing, facial and tongue movements. The child underwent a surgery which lasted 6-7 hours and the whole tumor could be removed. After surgery he was observed in ICU for three days. On the 4th day the child could breathe and swallow well and there was no facial or limb paralysis. The child was discharged eight days after the surgery. The child was then prepared to undergo focal radiation to the brain as part of the therapy for his type of brain tumour.
Recent advances in brain tumor
Meanwhile, Dr. Bharath Kumar Surisetti, Consultant Neuro Physician, Yashoda Hospitals, Hyderabad, highlighted the recent advances in treatment of brain tumor.
He expounded, “Precision medicine is revolutionizing cancer treatment. Instead of using the same treatment for the same type of cancer, precision medicine focuses on tailoring treatment to the individual patient. Few years back, cancer treatments are based on how tumour looks like morphologically. Now research is aimed at stopping biological pathways which allows tumour to spread.”
READ RELATED: Fiber: The Digestive Dynamo for a Healthier You
Here are a few newer techniques that he listed out:
Enhance imaging techniques: PET scans, MRI 3T, intra operative MRI, flourscene guided resection.
Immunotherapy: BRM (body response modifier) using body natural immune responses to tackle cancer cells.
Oncolytic virus therapy: Using virus to destroy brain tumor cells sparing normal tissue.
Blood brain barrier disruption: In this technique, the blood brain barrier is opened temporarily so that chemotherapy agents reach the brain easily.
GammaTile Therapy: This is a surgically targeted radiation therapy, in which one area of the brain is targeted with radiation treatment directly after tumor removal. Radiation is embedded into a collagen sponge, encapsulated in titanium and placed into the brain immediately after surgery. The radiation immediately begins to treat the area adjacent to where the tumor was removed, which is where most recurrences happen.
Liquid biopsy: Removing blood or cerebro spinal fluid to detect cancers instead of tissue sample.
Avatar: Growing a tumor outside patients body (example rat). This allows to check whether current treatments are working and to try other alternative treatments.
Immunotherapy: Developing a vaccine using tumor tissue, using viruses as an immunotherapy drug vehicle, CAR-T cell for glioblastoma
Gene therapy: After identifying the cancer causing genes, this therapy is aimed at repairing or replacing the oncogenes .
Total Wellness is now just a click away.
Follow us on
window.addEventListener(‘load’, (event) => {
// $(document).ready(function(){
$(‘#commentbtn’).on(“click”,function(){
(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&version=v2.3”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, ‘script’, ‘facebook-jssdk’));
$(“.cmntbox”).toggle();
});
// });
});
