Table of contents:
- What is the difference between brain tumor and cancer?
- Understand tumor development in the brain
- What is the life expectancy of people with brain cancer?
- Changes in the daily life of people with brain cancer
Did you know that brain cancer is actually a malignant tumor? Tumors in the brain can include benign tumors and malignant tumors. Benign tumors are relatively easy to treat, while malignant tumors or brain cancer can quickly lead to other deadly health conditions. However, do people with brain cancer have no life expectancy? Check out my explanation below.
What is the difference between brain tumor and cancer?
Before finding out whether people with brain cancer have a life expectancy or not, you should first understand what the difference between brain cancer and tumor is. Basically, brain cancer is a malignant tumor that lodges in the brain. The tumor itself is slowly progressive, so that over time, the tumor will get bigger and give more severe symptoms.
However, you must understand that benign tumors do not always become malignant tumors and end up with brain cancer. Therefore, if you do a medical examination and a tumor is detected in the brain, it is better if it is immediately followed up so that the tumor does not grow and turn malignant.
Basically, brain tumors can be divided into two types based on the location of origin of the tumor. These two types are primary and secondary tumors. Primary tumors are tumors that originate from cells in the brain itself.
For example, tumors originating from glial cells, namely glioma and astrocytoma tumors originating from the lining of the brain, namely meningioma tumors, and glioblastoma tumors, are tumors that form in astrocyte cells. Usually, tumors that are classified as primary are single tumors or only one number.
Meanwhile, secondary tumors are tumors of other organs that have spread to the brain. For example, a tumor that spreads from the breast to the brain, or from the uterus to the brain. Usually, the tumor spreads from other organs because where it originates, the tumor has entered the highest level, namely stage 4.
At that time the tumor cells have developed further and entered the lymph nodes and surrounding blood vessels. So, the tumor will spread to other parts of the body, including the brain. Secondary tumors usually number more than one or very many. Therefore, secondary tumors are considered more dangerous than primary tumors because the large number of tumors reduces the likelihood of being removed from the brain.
Large amounts will cause surgery to be ineffective, so treatment options for secondary tumors are usually radiation or chemotherapy alone. Meanwhile, for primary tumors, surgical removal of the tumor is still possible.
Understand tumor development in the brain
The development of tumors in each person will be different, it could be in a matter of months or even years. The development of this tumor will also affect the life expectancy of people with brain cancer. This is influenced by several factors, namely factors from within the body and factors originating from the tumor.
The body has a defense system, one of which is called tumor necrosis factor. This system allows the body to fight and block the abnormal cell growth caused by tumors.
If a person's resistance is strong enough, tumor development will slow down. Conversely, if the body's resistance is getting weaker day by day, tumor cells will easily grow and increase in number.
Usually you are also advised to perform an anatomical pathology biopsy procedure to determine the type and how aggressive the tumor is in the brain. The trick is to take a little tissue from the brain tumor for further investigation.
From these results, it will be seen which abnormal cells come from which brain cells. The biopsy also helps the medical team determine whether it is a benign tumor or a malignant tumor. Usually, the type of tumor determines the potential for whether the tumor will turn malignant or not.
In addition, a tumor is considered malignant if it grows back after being removed through a surgical procedure. In fact, the tumor that reappears may grow faster, so that its development can be said to be in a matter of months.
One type of tumor that is classified as malignant is a glioblastoma multiform tumor, which is a tumor formed from astrocyte cells.
What is the life expectancy of people with brain cancer?
Brain cancer is not assessed by grade or degree of severity. Tumors that are in the brain are always considered dangerous.
The life expectancy of each cancer patient is usually assessed on a scale, which is five years. Five years survival rate this is the life expectancy that has been commonly established for people with cancer, including brain cancer.
That is, the percentage of life expectancy of brain cancer patients using this measure of five years. Even so, it does not mean that patients who have been diagnosed with brain cancer cannot live more than five years, but it should be acknowledged that the percentage of life expectancy of more than five years for brain cancer patients is not large.
The percentage of life expectancy is usually determined by the patient's quality of life. Therefore, people around brain cancer patients must help improve their quality of life so that their percentage of life expectancy increases.
The reason is, if the immune system of brain cancer patients decreases, there is a possibility that the cancer will develop increasingly malignant. Therefore, the health of brain cancer patients can only be helped to be maintained at its best.
Apart from life expectancy, there are also risk factors that you should pay attention to. For example, men and women have the same potential to experience this condition.
However, men are more prone to tumors in the brain than women. This is because the retinoblastoma protein (RB) gene is thought to be less active in the male brain. Though this gene is very useful for inhibiting the growth of malignant cells in the brain.
The growth of malignant tumor cells in the brain is also more prone to occur in the elderly. Because, as you get older, the possibility of brain cancer is also increasing. Even so, it must be remembered that this disease is classified as a deadly disease.
Thus, it can be said that the highest life expectancy of brain cancer patients is five years. So, when someone has been diagnosed with brain cancer, of course there will be changes in the activities they do daily.
Changes in the daily life of people with brain cancer
Patients who experience brain cancer certainly experience many changes in their daily life and activities. The reason is, the tumor inside the patient's head will cause pressure. These stresses can cause a variety of other problems, depending on what nerves are being compressed.
For example, if the compression occurs on the motor nerves, it is possible for the patient to experience paralysis, as experienced by stroke patients. Meanwhile, pressure on the sensory nerves can cause numbness, tingling, or pain. Then, the pressure that occurs in the visual nerve pathway can result in blindness.
In fact, brain cancer can also cause complications. For example, when there is pressure in the brain, the nerves to swallow and breathe become problematic, causing infection in the lungs. Usually, complications occur due to changes in the patient's general physical health status and as the brain cancer progresses in severity.
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