Cell Phones and Brain Cancer: Is There a Link?

With the recent announcement by WHO (world health organisation) about the potential dangers of cell phone radiation, we are all naturally concerned, especially those of us who use cell phones regularly and/or who have kids with cell phones. What is safe, we wonder, in terms of use, cell phone type and exposure? Are some cell phones safer than others, and are there ways in which we can limit the dangers by changing our usage patterns?

While the answers are still coming in, there are things we can do to help protect ourselves. These tips come from a variety of sources, including a brain scientist who has recovered from brain cancer (Dr. David Servan-Schreiber - if you have not yet read his book, Anticancer, A New Way of Life go get it! It's an excellent read for anyone wishing to prevent cancer, or already dealing with the health challenges cancer presents). Simultaneously, we are all terrified of cancer but somehow in denial that it will ever touch us personally. It's time we look clearly at the rampart cancer rates of the last decade and take as many steps as we can personally to protect our health.

Loss and Bereavement: The Support Services for Families With Children With Brain Tumors

There are many thoughts that run through a person's mind when they learn that their child or sibling has been diagnosed with a brain tumor. What will my child's life and my life be like now? How will this affect me? How will our family survive such a trauma? These and a million other questions come to mind when your child is diagnosed with a brain tumor. Many parents and children feel grief towards a life that was lost and these feelings can occur whether or not there was a death. The life you were planning for yourself or your child may no longer be possible and you have to cope with all of these new feelings while still managing day to day life, a daunting task.

Perhaps more devastating is the actual loss of a child. This experience is heart breaking and life altering for parents, siblings, other family members and friends, as it does not follow the proper course of life. The process of grief differs from person to person. Grief is a very subjective emotion and depending on the age and the relationship a person had with the child, their reaction to the loss will take on a variety of forms. For many, however, it is a long and painful journey, and it causes some to feel alone and forgotten by others who go on with their lives.

What Is an Oligodendroglioma?

At the age of 6, I was diagnosed with a brain tumor. It is most commonly found in adults, so perhaps that means I am mature, but likely it only indicates a lack of fortune.

Oligodendroglioma is a type of tumor that is thought to originate the oligodendrocytes in the brain. Most of the time oligodendrogliomas occur in adults; only four percent of them occur in children. On average, patients diagnosed with them are about 35 years old.

Oligodendrogliomas originate from an unknown source at this time. Some studies have shown a link to a viral cause while others have found a genetic cause. More than likely, both are causes.

There is no way to tell if a tumor is an oligodendroglioma aside from taking a biopsy. They often take a shape similar to a fried egg and sort of wrap around healthy cells. This can lead to headaches, dizziness, and seizures. Since oligodendrogliomas can occur anywhere in the brain, they can ultimately have a number of different symptoms associated with them. For instance, visual loss, motor problems, and even cognitive difficulties can result depending on the location of the tumor.

Returning to School After a Cancer Diagnosis

"Back to normal" means "back to school" for most children who have been treated for a brain or spinal tumor. When your child returns to school, you want him or her to be treated as normally as possible and it will take the cooperation of both the school and the health care professionals working with your child to make this happen.. To make the transition back to school an easy one the teachers and school nurse should be encouraged to prepare classmates by providing them with information about the disease and treatment and answering any questions they may have. Let the teachers and classmates know what to expect and give them an opportunity to express their concerns and feelings. It is important for teachers to communicate to other students that cancer cannot be caught and that radiation treatments do not make a child who has them "radioactive." These types of open conversations may eliminate children's curiosity and make it easier for them to accept your child back into the class and help them to accept the differences in their classmates and make them more empathetic and willing to help. Some medical centers provide an education team consisting of a child life worker and health care practitioner who can help prepare the class for your child's return, which in some cases may be helpful.

In order to make the re-entry into the scholastic environment less abrupt for your child, the students and the teachers, a slow, transitional approach to reentering school can be helpful, perhaps only having lunch, attending specific classes, or going on a field trip with the class prior to a full-time return to school. It is important to update your child's teachers and the school nurse with whatever medical information will help them help your child in school. The more knowledgeable and familiar the teachers are with how your child functions, the more the classroom environment can be adapted to your child's special needs, no matter what level of school they may be returning.

Late Effects: Cognitive Changes That Can Result From Cancer Treatment

Interviews with families and patients show that a cancer diagnosis and treatment is unbelievably stressful and draining, and it feels as though a child who survives surgery, radiation, chemotherapy and any other issues and complications that come their way has certainly dealt with enough. Unfortunately, survivors of childhood brain tumors frequently develop problems after the initial battle is won, in the areas of intellectual ability, academic achievement, memory, and attention. Cognitive changes are not uncommon among brain tumor survivors, however, the extent to which any one change will take effect depends on many different factors, including tumor location and surgery, age at diagnosis and treatment with radiation therapy.

Neurological problems such as seizures and muscle coordination problems are relatively common among childhood brain tumor survivors. These sorts of disabilities often develop around the time of diagnosis or after initial surgery, but sometimes they may first appear months to years after diagnosis. Radiation injury to the brain may, on rare occasions, cause delayed neurological problems that may become not become apparent until 10 or more years after treatment.

Neurosensory problems such as impaired vision and hearing may also develop, both early in the course of diagnosis and treatment and years after treatments are finished. Radiation can cause delayed visual problems through several different mechanisms. Direct damage to the eye nerves (optic nerves) can infrequently result in visual changes years after treatment. In rare instances, previous radiation can produce cataracts in the eyes that can interfere with normal vision. If your child has had surgery near the eye or eye nerves or has had radiation to the head, regular visits to an eye specialist (ophthalmologist) are highly recommended. Hearing difficulties are also common after treatment for brain tumors and, in general, remain stable or even decrease in severity over time. Under certain circumstances, though, hearing problems have been shown to get worse or appear for the first time months to years after treatment ends. Children who receive treatment with the combination of the drug cisplatin and radiation to the brain appear to be at the greatest risk for developing delayed hearing problems. Periodic hearing tests should be performed for all children at risk for hearing problems as well as for any child who is experiencing academic or learning difficulties.

Learning disabilities are particularly common among brain tumor survivors and are difficult and frustrating. Many children with learning disabilities require special education services at school. Moreover, one may observe deterioration in function over time, particularly in children who were treated with radiation to the brain at a young age. Like any other problematic issue, early detection of a problem is the best way to combat it, and this assessment is best accomplished by working closely with a pediatric neuropsychologist who has experience working with children with brain tumors. As symptoms may develop over time, it is extremely important to reassess cognitive functioning periodically in all survivors who are at high risk, as well as in survivors who are experiencing academic difficulties. This is done by administering a battery of tests known as psychometric or neuropsychological tests.

Adult Brain Tumor Risks, Diagnosis, and Treatment

A brain tumor is a mass or growth of abnormal cells that have multiplied out of control. There are many different types of brain tumors. Some are benign, or non-cancerous, while others are classified as malignant, or cancerous. Symptoms you experience and treatment options depend largely on the type of tumor as well as its size and location.

Primary brain tumors are those that originate in the brain or tissues surrounding it. These tumors are much less common than secondary tumors, which occur when cancer from another part of the body metastasizes or spreads to the brain. While any type of cancer may do this, melanoma and cancers of the breast, colon, kidney, and lung are the most common to metastasize to the brain.

Researchers have not been able to determine exactly what causes brain tumors to form. Only a few risk factors have been documented. Exposure to radiation therapy of the head may put you at a higher risk for developing brain tumors. Certain genetic syndromes may increase your risk as well. Typically, there is not a clear indication of what caused the tumor to form. Research continues to determine if cell phones may contribute to the formation of brain tumors. At this time, no clear conclusions have been made linking the two.

There are no reliable screenings that detect brain tumors before symptoms appear. Patients may suffer from a variety of symptoms before visiting their physician for diagnosis. The size, location, and rate of growth of the tumor often determine what symptoms occur. Some of the most common symptoms may include:

What Are The Causes Of Brain Cancer?

Here, I am going to describe the most common causes of Brian Cancer. As if you know the causes early, you can take proper precautions to live far away from Brain Cancer.

1. Deletion of Gene Causes Brain cancer: The deletion of a gene, normally present on chromosome 14, may cause cancer in brain, which is the most common, malignant type of brain cancer. Recently, the Researchers of Stanford University School of Medicine has exposed that the deletion of this gene, promote tumor development and grow resistance to therapy. This is frequently occurs in one out of every four cases of Brain cancer.

2. Heredity-An Important Cause: Risk of suffering from brain cancer is known to increase if a person has a family history of cancer. Cancer in brain often occurs with members of the same family, so heredity could be a cause of this.