All About Brain Cancer

Pain killers for cancer patients may be taken orally or intravenously. These medications may have side effects and put a strain on the kidneys and livers. Complementary and alternative medication techniques are being used hand in hand with traditional medication. This is to avoid the necessity to increase dosage to medications and reduce pain.

Some of the alternative pain management methods are: traditional Chinese acupuncture where pressure points are stimulated to trigger the release of natural painkillers in the body; massage which helps relieve pain, stress and depression; herbal supplements which help relieve inflammations and pain; and mind-body techniques such as yoga, hypnosis, deep breathing and guided imagery.

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Radiation therapy uses high-power x-rays, gamma rays, or protons to kill cancer cells. A large machine aims radiation at the tumor and the tissue close to it. Sometimes the radiation may be directed to the entire brain or to the spinal cord.

Radiation therapy usually follows surgery. The radiation kills tumor cells that may remain in the area. Sometimes, patients who cannot have surgery have radiation therapy instead. The treatment schedule depends on the type and size of the tumor and the age of the patient. Each treatment lasts only a few minutes.

Nausea is the most common side effect of radiotherapy, and this can sometimes last for hours. Other side effects include hair loss, and redness and dryness of the skin around the area being treated.

Chemotherapy refers to the use of drugs to kill cancer cells in the brain. The drugs may be given orally or through injection. Chemotherapy is done at regular intervals, with adequate time spacing to allow the patient to recover.

Sometimes, during surgery, the surgeon implants medicated wafer after removing the tumor. This wafer will eventually melt and release the drug to the surrounding tissues.

The most common side effects include fever and chills, nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite, and weakness. Some side effects may be relieved with medicine.

In 2005, the results of a seven-year study by the European Ramazzini Foundation for cancer research in Italy demonstrated that the chemical sweetener, aspartame , “induces an increase in lymphomas and leukemias in female rats.” This study, involving 1800 rats, demonstrated that aspartame administered at varying levels in feed causes a statistically significant increase of lymphomas-leukemias and malignant tumors of the kidneys in female rats and malignant tumors of peripheral nerves in male rats.

However, a more recent study was done by the US’ National Cancer Institute in 2006 compared people who drank aspartame-containing beverages with those who did not. The study, involving about 500,000 people, showed that increasing levels of consumption were not associated with any risk of lymphomas, leukemias, or brain cancers in men or women.

So which is which? How do we determine who to believe?

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Patients who are diagnosed with brain cancer have several options, depending on the tumor type and stage. Patients may receive surgery, chemotherapy, or radiotherapy. Often, management approach is a combination of any of the three.

In addition, patient may require treatment of other problems that arise from the main illness or as side effects of therapy. This is called supportive care.

Craniotomy is the surgical opening of the skull to access the brain. It is done under general anesthesia. The patient’s head is shaved, after which the surgeon makes the first incision. The surgeon then uses a special saw to remove a piece of bone from the skull. After removing part or all of the tumor, the surgeon covers the opening in the skull with that piece of bone or with a piece of metal or fabric. The surgeon then closes the incision in the scalp.

Side effects of surgery include headache, tiredness, edema or swelling in the brain, and infection.

The brain has three major regions: the brainstem, midbrain and forebrain.

The brainstem is composed of the medulla, the part that controls breathing, blood pressure, heart rate and digestion, and the cerebellum which coordinates speech and muscle movement. It is the most primitive part of the brain, as it controls the most basic and essential functions in the body.

The midbrain contains the links between the brainstem and thalamus to transmit information, and also the hypothalamus to regulate action. The amygdala is associated with aggressive behavior. The hippocampus is associated with long-term memory, and amnesia is a result of damage in this part of the brain.

The forebrain develops into the cerebral cortex, and is associated with mind function such as reasoning, sensation and motion.

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A research was done on how people deal with terminal brain cancer – points of view of both patient and their care givers. Interviews were done on seven patients who have terminal brain cancer, and 22 loved ones who are supporting and are serving as the patients’ care givers. The questions prepared aims to get a better understanding on what is important to the patients and their families when it comes to treatment options. The major themes that resulted from the interviews are as follows:

- brain cancer is a unique disease because it affects all aspects of one’s physical and psychological being.

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Stress is the silent cause of brain cancer. If we want to care for our brain, we must reduce the stress in our lives by having a positive mental attitude, controlling our hot-headed temper and seeking for activities that will make us calm and relaxed at all times. If we are not careful, we can actually kill our good cells by being stressed.

One kind of stress is called acute stress, which is normal and short-lived. It is the one that you experience when a car suddenly pulls out in front of you and you have to hit your brakes. The long-term stress in our day-to-day lives is the one that can actually damage the brain.

This mechanism is being studied for it allows specific cancer cells from migrating into other organs causing a spread of the disease. Most cancer cells afflict a specific body part or organ comes in a specific form. One unique from the other but some instances such as that with breast cancer has them migrating into the bone, only to resurface years after successful treatment. This is why relapse is a common yet more deadlier recurrence of the disease for it seemingly learns the ropes of how it was killed, rendering the said method ineffective the next time round. Migration through the blood stream is the most likely culprit, using the body’s own blood circulation system to spread itself. The cancer cell then adapts to the new environment, inflicting the different cells, getting them to mutate as well. This “holy grail” of cancer progression would allow doctors to stem the spread of the disease thus stemming the spread. It would also allow a better understanding of the mechanisms at work, giving way to better treatment for future generations to use and benefit from.

Researchers at the famed Oxford University have discovered and have visual proof of how breast cancer cells migrate to the brain and induces them to mutate, themselves turning into cancerous cells themselves. Metastasis has long been known but proof of such a cell mechanism, wherein the cells of a cancer cell breaks out of the original cell, infects other healthy cells then turning them into cancerous cells themselves. This mechanism is the main reason why cancer becomes fatal, able to spread from one organ with a unique set of cells to another, as if there was no difference to their structure. This is why stem cell research, the body’s primal super cell which has the ability to turn into all the different cells in the body is so great for the ability of cancer cells to migrate and adapt to infect the thousands or so types of cells, a seemingly similar mechanism.