How Do I Know Which Brain Cancer Treatment Is Best?

There are several treatments available for individuals affected by brain cancer however which brain cancer treatment that is used is dependent on several factors such as age and general health of the individual, size, type and location of the tumor and whether the tumor in question is primary or secondary.

Treatment options for brain cancer include surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy. In some cases radiation therapy alone may be enough to treat the tumor however in other cases it may be necessary to combine one or more treatments for the best results and the most successful outcome.

Surgery is generally the first choice for treatment in tumors that can be accessed in this way. The primary objective of surgery is to safely remove as much of the tumor as possible without causing damage to nearby healthy brain tissue. The larger amount of the tumor that can be removed the better the chances of success. In some cases this is not possible and only part of the tumor may be removed. While this may improve the problem other methods of brain cancer treatment may also be needed. In cases where removal is not an option your doctor may take a biopsy of the tumor in an effort to identify its type and thus determine the best course of future treatment attempts.

Chemotherapy is a method of treatment in which drugs are used to slow the growth of cancer cells in addition to preventing them from dividing and destroy as many of the cancerous cells as possible.

Radiation therapy in some cases is the only treatment that is feasible especially when the tumor is in a location that makes surgical access difficult or impossible. In this type of treatment powerful energy beams are projected into the affected area in an effort to destroy the cancerous cells and prevent the tumor from spreading. This method is often used in individuals who cannot choose surgery as a viable option and is sometimes used following surgery to target any cancerous cells that may remain. This is a local therapy meaning it only affects cancerous cells and has no effect on healthy cells.

There are several procedures or treatments that may be necessary prior to surgery being performed. You may need to be given a course of anti swelling drug such as dexamethasone or a drug to prevent seizures like carbamazepine. If you have a large amount of fluid around the brain a shunt may be inserted to drain the excess fluid.

Which brain cancer treatment is used varies from one person to the next because no two people are alike. Two individuals with the same size, location and type of brain cancer may receive very different treatments. This is largely because what works well for one person may not work so well for someone else. Your doctor will discuss which treatments are most likely to be the safest and most effective choices for your individual circumstances after diagnosis has been made and stage and type have been determined.