When it comes to brain tumors, the medical profession does not have a standard system to describe the spread of cancer. Primary brain tumors are usually formed in the central nervous system and invariably they do not spread to other parts of the body. In order to treat these tumors, doctors classify they based on the type of cell in which the tumor began, the location of the tumor in the brain and what grade the tumor is.

Here is a list of some of the different types of primary brain tumors that occur in adults:

• Brain Stem Gliomas: This is a type of tumor that forms in the brain stem, which the part that connects the brain to the spinal cord. The tumor is usually high grade, meaning it spreads very quickly and is difficult to cure.
• Pineal Astrocytic Tumor: This type of tumor occurs in or near the pineal gland. This gland is responsible for producing melatonin hormone which governs our sleeping and waking patterns. This tumor can be of any grade.
• Pilocytic Astrocytoma: This tumor is a grade I tumor and develops in brain cells called astrocytes. The tumor grows slowly and very rarely does it spread to neighboring tissues of the brain. The tumor can be cured and is seen more often in children and young adults.
• Diffuse Astrocytoma: This is another tumor that develops in astrocytes. It grows slowly and has the tendency to spread to the neighboring brain cells. This is a grade II tumor seen mostly in young adults.
• Anaplastic Astrocytoma: This tumor is also called malignant astrocytomas and grows very fast and spreads to the adjacent brain cells. The cancer cells look different from normal cells and is develops mostly by the time a person reaches 40 years of age. This is a grade III brain tumor.
• Glioblastoma: This is one of the most aggressive brain tumors and is categorized as grade IV brain tumor. Ithttp://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=1841166204983340887 is more commonly referred to as glioblastoma multiforme and is usually fatal. It is very difficult to treat and occurs mostly in adults ranging from 45 years to 70 years.



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Side effects from chemotherapy are a reality for most patients suffering from cancer. Although they are not dangerous, controlling the side effects from chemotherapy can help alleviate the symptoms which can be extremely inconvenient and annoying.

Here are some methods to control the side effects from chemotherapy:

• Constipation: Many patients suffer from constipation as a result of chemotherapy. However, you can have regular bowel movements if you increase the consumption of fluid, vegetables and bran cereals. This should start a day before you start your chemotherapy and continue thereafter for another week.
• Nausea and vomiting: This is caused by many chemotherapy drugs and you can get relief from it by taking certain medications. However, there are no tablets existing that can prevent nausea and vomiting. All you can look for is relief.
• Heart burn or acid reflux: You can stop this by giving 1/2 glass or milk or taking a spoon or two of antacid. However, let your doctor recommend the antacid for you.
• Mouth soreness: During chemotherapy oral hygiene is of utmost importance. You can use a special mouth rinse to ease the soreness but you cannot prevent it.
• Hair loss: This side effect varies from one person to the next based on the type of drug used and the doses used. You can either have hair loss or just thinning of the hair. There is no way of preventing this symptom other than stopping your treatment. The hair lost through chemotherapy will start re-growing once your treatment is over. But be prepared for it to take few months. Until then, you can use wigs, scarves, turbans or caps to cover your hair loss.
• Sensitivity to the sun: Some chemotherapy drugs cause this and the best solution is for you to use a complete sun blocking lotion so that you do not burn your skin when outside.



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Even children are not immune to cancer and they too can get it any time. The fact about childhood cancers is that children can get cancer if they are at risk. Other than that doctors are still trying to figure out why childhood cancers occur; as they are trying to understand why adult cancers occur.

When a child gets cancer, he too would require treatment and one of the most common treatments given for childhood cancer is chemotherapy. Here cancer-fighting drugs are injected into the child so that the drugs can destroy the cancer cells. Chemotherapy drugs can be given to a child intramuscularly, intravenously, intra-arterially or intra-cavitarily. If a child has brain tumors or leukemia, anti-cancer drugs are usually injected into the spinal fluid. Certain chemotherapy drugs can be administered in pill form.

Your child will experience pain when the needle is being pushed into the vein, and once the drug starts flowing through the needle into the body, he might experience a burning sensation. Remember, the doctor or healthcare professional should be experienced in injecting chemotherapy drugs because if the drug leaks out from the vein, it can cause severe burns to the skin.

When it comes taking oral medication for chemotherapy, you might face a problem with smaller children. They may find it difficult to swallow the medication. However, you can break the pills into smaller pieces or powder and mix with custard or apple sauce so that it becomes easier for the child to swallow. When it comes to older children, especially adolescents, they may want to be responsible for taking their own medication. However, as a parent you should familiarize yourself with the medication and keep a track of it so that all anti-cancer tablets are taken correctly.

As a parent, you should device a system through which you can keep a track of the when the medication has to be taken. One of the best ways of doing this is to keep a special calendar and marking it.



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