Brain Tumor Symptoms
Brain tumor - what is it?
A brain tumor is a growth of abnormal cells in the brain. Brain tumors can be benign or malignant. A benign brain tumor is usually slow growing and doesn't tend to metastasize (spread) to the rest of the body. Malignant brain tumors are aggressive, grow rapidly and can spread to other areas of the body. A brain tumor can be primary or metastatic. A primary brain tumor is one where the initial abnormal cells started out in the brain tissue. Metastatic brain tumors are cancerous cells that have spread from another site of the body where the primary tumor is eg the lung, the breast and taken residence in the brain tissue and multiply there.
Brain tumor symptoms - how can you tell?
Depending on where the brain tumor is sited in the brain and how it is affecting the different areas of the brain, different symptoms can result. Some of these brain tumor symptoms are rather vague and inconspicuous, making diagnosis extra difficult. Other symptoms only progress to a recognizable problem as the tumor grows and results in increased pressure within the brain cavity, so often these brain tumors are difficult to pick up in their early stages.
General brain tumor symptoms
- headaches which come and go - they generally aren't the throbbing kind. Headache symptoms may be worse in the morning and gradually improves in the day, they can also worsen with exercise, or when you bend down.
- changes in your personality, your memory, speech, concentration span, hearing loss or ringing the ears, vision problems - these symptoms can be caused by the tumor pressing on the particular processing areas of the brain or due to the increased pressure in the brain cavity caused by the expanding brain tumor.
- Seizures/Fits - sometimes it can be the full blown type where you lose consciousness or focal seizures where you get symptoms like muscle twitching, numbness, tingling sensations, speech problems.
Return to medical symptoms page
Brain tumor symptoms