Methods of diagnosing and treating brain tumors in children

Methods of diagnosing and treating brain tumors in children

Are brain tumors (Pediatric brain tumor), the most common tumors among children. The symptoms are caused by increased pressure within the skull, one of the most important signs that may point to increased pressure in the skull, headaches, and vomiting, especially in the morning, add to drowsiness.
Considered Brain tumors (Pediatric brain tumor) The most common tumors among children and their symptoms are caused by increased pressure within the skull, and One of the most important signs that may point to increased pressure in the skull, headaches, and vomiting, especially in the morning, add to drowsiness, convulsive seizures, in addition to behavioral changes and changes in movement and speech.
When the child shows these signs, will recommend the doctor some tests and procedures, if your child with the suspected brain tumor, to assist in diagnosis and determining treatment options, such as:
-Neurological examinations inspection may include among other things, vision and hearing test and balance and coordination and reflexes of the child. And there is a problem in some areas might provide clues about the brain part likely to be affected by a brain tumor.
-Imaging tests help Imaging tests in locating brain tumor and its size. Often perform magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). And may be used in addition to magnetic resonance imaging specialist, such as functional MRI or arthroscopy, magnetic resonance spectrum. Other tests include computerized tomography (CT) and Positron Emission Tomography (PET).
A biopsy sample may be removed from the tissue for examination (biopsy) as part of brain tumor removal surgery. If the tumor is in a sensitive area may be affected when you undergo extensive surgery, he digs a small hole children neurosurgeon in the skull, fine needle through the hole, and removes the tissue using a needle. Biopsy sample analyzed in a laboratory to identify cell types and level of severity.
-Medical diagnostics flour added to a traditional biopsy analysis, tumor tissue can also be subject to scrutiny to detect genetic mutations and molecular basis of the tumor.
-Testing whether it's spread it suspects that your child has brain tumor may be due to cancer that has spread from another area in the body, the doctor may recommend tests and procedures for determining the place where cancer started.
* Treatment
Pediatric brain tumors treatment depends on the type of tumor and its size and location in addition to your baby's age and health condition in General.
1. surgery brain tumor located in an accessible place to operate, children's neurosurgeon will remove the greatest possible brain tumor with a more secure way as possible.
In some cases, the tumors are small and easy separation from the surrounding brain tissue, which makes full surgical removal is possible. While in other cases, the tumors cannot be separated from the surrounding tissues or tumors located near sensitive areas in the brain, making surgery risky, in such cases, the neurosurgeon removes the children as much as possible of the tumor.

Just remove the part of the brain tumor may help reduce the appearance of signs and symptoms. Surgery involves the removal of a brain tumor in children some risks, such as infection and bleeding, and other hazards on the area of the tumor in the brain. For example, it might involve Oncology near nerves related to eyes on the risk of vision loss.

2. conventional radiation therapy
Radiotherapy uses high energy rays, like rays or protons to kill tumor cells. It can emit radiation therapy device outside the body (external radiation Pack), or in extremely rare cases, radioactive material can be placed inside the body near the tumor in the brain (alkethbih).
The package could focus on just one area of outer radiation of your brain where the tumor, or it can be routed to the brain (radiation therapy to the brain). Radiotherapy is used for the entire brain often to treat cancer that has spread in the brain of some other body parts.

Dependent side effects of radiation therapy on the type and dose of radiation received by your child. Common side effects include, during or immediately after radiation therapy, fatigue and irritation of the scalp and hair and temporarily had bouts of headaches. Sometimes nausea and vomiting may occur but can help the nausea medication to control the symptoms.

3. radiation therapy with protons
Proton radiotherapy is available in a limited number of major health care facilities in the United States, and it's got more concentrated doses of radiation to brain tumors, reducing nearby healthy tissue exposed to radiation. This seems to lessen the side effects of short term and long term and reduces the chances of carcinomas.

Children who suffer certain types of brain tumors from radiation therapy with protons in particular; it's still a growing baby's brain, which is more sensitive to the effects of radiation, even low doses or medium.

4. radiosurgery
Radiosurgery uses stereoscopic many radioactive beams to give shape the very center of radiotherapy to kill cancer cells in a small area. Each package is not very strong radiation, the meeting point of all packages – brain tumor – receive a high dose of radiation to kill cancer cells.

There are different types of technology used in radiosurgery to provide necessary radiation treatment for brain tumors, such as Gamma Knife or linear accelerator (LINAC). Radiosurgery is usually performed in a stage of treatment, and in some cases, your child can go home the same day.

5. chemotherapy

Chemotherapy uses drugs to kill tumor cells. Injected medications typically for children with brain tumors in the veins (chemotherapy via veins), and may be taken through the mouth in pill form. And there are many types of chemotherapy, cancer type options depend, and the side effects of chemotherapy depend on the type of medication and dose. General side effects include chemotherapy nausea and vomiting and hair loss and reduced production of blood cells.

6. targeted drug therapy
Targeted therapies focused on specific abnormalities within tumor cells. By blocking these deformities, pharmacological treatments from the lead to the death of cancer cells.
For example, bevacizumab (AVASTIN) one pharmacological treatments from being used to treat a type of brain cancer called glioma tumor are low class. Given this medication through a vein (intravenous injection), and stops are the new blood vessels and prevents the flow of blood to tumors and kill cancer cells.

And now using drugs, such as dasatinib wevimoravinib waivirolimos and other various drugs to treat brain tumors if target specific molecular tumor. And by understanding the molecular basis of tumor formation, there are many clinical trials that are made using targeted drug therapy.

* Rehabilitation after undergoing treatment.
Given that the brain tumors can grow in parts of the brain responsible for speech and motor skills and vision and thinking, rehabilitation is an essential part in the recovery. The doctor may refer you to services that can help you, such as:
-Physical therapy. To help your child regain muscle or motor skills lost.
- Occupational therapy. To help your child to return to practice everyday activities.
- Speech therapy. If your child has difficulty speaking.

-Teaching. If your child is school age, who needs help to adapt to changes in memory and thinking after brain tumor treatment.

* Alternative medicine
It was a small research on complementary or alternative treatments brain tumors but failed to demonstrate the ability of any alternative treatments to cure brain tumors, as some can be harmful. And though it may help some complementary approaches, such as play therapy or music therapy or relaxation exercises, your child in dealing with a brain tumor and its treatment.