QuestionMy mother was recently diagnosed with BRAIN
TUMOR.
I was really shocked and honestly I do not know what to do
Please help me.
1. How did my mother had this tumor since she did never
been sick from 25 to 55 years old. She only had
arthritis by age 56.
2. How can I be sure that this is really tumor which is based
only on the CTSCAN?
3. What should be the proper solution?
4. What are other ways to verify brain tumor?
Thank you
AnswerHi Ben and thanks for writing,
I'm sorry to hear about your Mother, I'll answer your questions the best i can.
1. A brain tumor can grow slowly or quickly. You won't notice and symptoms until it's pressing on something that affects your body - then you'll noitce things like slurred speech or paralysis or changes in vision or strange smells or headaches etc...
2. CTScans are basically a picture of the inside of our boides. A growth will clearly show up. Radiologists are trained to know what different shadows mean, of course as humans any of us can be wrong sometimes. You could ask for another test picture and they may do a MIR or another Scan with contrast (dye).
3. You should speak to the Oncologist (Cancer Specialist) to see what treatment would be best for your Mom. The decision as to which treatment(s) to use depend on many factors and it is your right to ask WHY they're choosing what they do. Malignant tumours are usually treated with Radiation and sometimes Chemotherapy, benign tumors may be left alone if they're not bothering the patient.
4. Due to their location, biopsies are not normally done for brain tumours as the risk of damage is high.
I hope this helps and wish you both all the best,
Margot
