According to research, there are four stages of brain tumors that are classified by grade (grade I, grade II, grade III, or grade IV -the most severe). The grade of the brain tumor depends on how many areas the tumor had got affected. Even a little bit of cancer in the human brain is very difficult to treat.
This grade is determined by the way the cells look under a microscope. If the grade number is higher, the more abnormal the cells appear, and the higher the brain tumor stage is.
• The most common types of primary brain tumors usually found among the adults are astrocytoma, oligodendroglioma, and meningioma (which arises on the surrounding membranes of the brain and spinal cord).
• The most common type of brain tumors found in children is brain stem glioma, grade I or II astrocytomas, medulloblastoma, ependymoma, and glioma.
Symptoms of Brain Tumor
These are the most common symptoms of brain tumors –
• Balancing problems while standing or walking
• Blurry vision problems
• Change in sense of smell
• Changes in mental ability (not able to concentrate properly, memory loss)
• Changes in mood, and personality
• Changes in the speech like difficulty in speaking, impaired voice, or not able to speak at all.
• Coordination problems in the body
• Dizziness
• Extreme numbness or tingling in the arms or legs
• Facial paralysis
• Fatigue
• Hallucinations
• Headaches persistent and/or severe (usually worse in the morning)
• Hearing problems
• Muscle jerking or twitching (like seizures or convulsions)
• Muscle weakness (for example, arm, and leg weakness)
• Nausea and vomiting
• Not able to be alert which might lead to any accidents
• Pins and needles sensations or reduced sensation of touch.
• Reduced mental capacity and confused
• Sleepiness
• Weakness on one side of the body
These symptoms might even occur in people who are not having brain cancer. Plus none of these symptoms alone or in combination can indicate that a person has brain cancer.
What are the causes and risk factors for brain tumors?
No one knows exactly what causes brain tumors. However, there is still research is going on this to know whether people already having some certain risk factors are more probable to develop a brain tumor than others.
The risk factors for Brain Tumors could be
• Ionizing radiation – Such type of ionizing radiation comes from high dose x-rays (such as radiation therapy which aimed at the head), this can lead to cell damage and causes the brain tumor. People who are exposed to such ionizing radiation might have a high probability of getting a brain tumor, such as meningioma or glioma.
• Family history – The probability of running a brain tumor disease in a family is almost negligible. There are only a very few numbers of families that have several members with brain tumors.
