Tumors and Brain Cancer
We take care of your nervous system health
A select group of highly professional and certified doctors in the various neurological specialties are ready to assist you with the quality and warmth that characterizes us. Our mission is to provide you with comprehensive and multidisciplinary care programs for the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of nervous system diseases, always maintaining excellence in our activities focusing on your safety.
Neuro oncología
The Neuro-Oncology Program at the Centro Médico ABC Neurological Center provides state-of-the-art treatment for patients with nervous system tumors (malignant and benign), including brain and spine. Our team provides expert care for patients experiencing neurological complications from cancer, cancer therapies, or related disorders. Our qualified and experienced physicians participate in a multidisciplinary approach to the management of diseases involving the brain and spine.
Tumores cerebrales
What is a tumor?
The vast majority of cells in the body have a life cycle, so, similar to what happens with a living being: they are born, multiply and die. Cell multiplication is called mitosis and is carried out by the genetic information found in their nuclei. This mitosis follows a strict balance, whose primary objective is to repair and regenerate some damaged organs. However, there are times when this cell division is carried out in an excessive way, which generates the appearance of defective cells, which accumulate and form a mass or tumor.
How many types of tumors are there?
Generically, tumors can be classified into primary and secondary. Primary tumors originate in the cells of a certain organ, while secondary tumors (also called metastases) arise in a different organ.
Another way to classify them is by their behavior as benign and malignant. The difference between the two is the speed with which its cells multiply. This means that, in malignant tumors, cells divide more frequently, so they grow rapidly, unlike benign tumors, where the rate of cell multiplication is slower, and the growth of tumors can take several years.
What are the symptoms of a brain tumor?
The most frequently reported symptoms in brain tumors are:
- Headache (cephalalgia): usually progressive in intensity and frequency, initially relieved by medication but gradually not. This pain tends to be constant, pulsating, and without a clear time pattern. The location of the pain is not necessarily where the tumor is located.
- Seizures: commonly known as epileptic attacks, characterized by sudden flexion and extension movements of the arms and legs, either localized (in one limb) or generalized (in all four limbs), which may or may not be accompanied by loss of consciousness.
- Loss of some neurological function: double vision, blurred vision, deafness, blindness, difficulty speaking, mouth deviation, drooping eyelid, weakness or inability to move one or more limbs, difficulty swallowing food, agitation, or depression.
- Others: dizziness, vertigo, nausea, and vomiting.
What are the most common primary brain tumors?
Primary brain tumors are named after the cells that make them up, and the most common are meningiomas and gliomas. Meningiomas originate in the meninges, the membranes that cover the brain and spinal cord. They are benign tumors and therefore slow-growing. This often allows them to go unnoticed for a long time, since the brain tends to “adapt and get used to” the presence of the tumor, which is why, at first, they cause few or no symptoms, and it is not uncommon for them to have reached large sizes by the time they are diagnosed.
Gliomas originate in glial cells, elements that help hold and protect neurons. The most common form within this group of tumors is called an astrocytoma, as it originates in astrocytes, a specific type of glial cell. According to the World Health Organization, astrocytomas are classified into four grades, depending on the rate of cell multiplication. Grades I and II are considered slow-growing, while grades III and IV are fast-growing or malignant.
How to detect a brain tumor and its specific type?
Diagnostic certainty is established only through the histopathological study of the tumor. This means that a fragment of the tumor must be taken and analyzed under a microscope by a specialist to precisely determine its type. Imaging studies—such as X-rays, computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and positron emission tomography (PET)—only indicate the presence of the tumor and suggest a possible diagnosis, but it is confirmed only after analysis in the pathology laboratory.
Tratamientos para el tumor cerebral
What is the treatment for brain meningiomas?
Since they are slow-growing tumors, not all require treatment. Those that are small and located in areas that do not affect neurological functions can be closely monitored. However, when they grow or are located near functional areas of the brain, treatment is recommended. Under ideal conditions, the best option is surgery, as it allows for the removal of the lesion and therefore better disease control. However, when these tumors are in areas that are difficult to access surgically and are smaller than 3 cm, they can be treated with a targeted radiation system known as radiosurgery.
What is the treatment for astrocytomas?
The vast majority of astrocytomas must undergo surgery. However, for tumors located in functional areas of the brain, especially in its deeper parts (thalamus) or in a structure called the brainstem (located at the lower part of the brain), surgery can be very risky and is therefore only indicated in selected cases.
Grade I astrocytomas that are completely removed surgically generally do not require further treatment. On the other hand, grade II, III, and IV astrocytomas, in addition to surgery, must undergo radiotherapy and chemotherapy, even when surgery appears to have removed them completely. This is because these tumors have roots, and these additional (adjuvant) treatment modalities are indicated to control them.
What are the consequences of undergoing surgery for a brain tumor?
Although every medical procedure carries a risk, there has been significant technological development that has greatly increased the safety of brain tumor treatment. The possible impairments in brain function that may occur after surgery depend on the specific location and size of the tumor.
Techniques such as microsurgery, endoscopy, neuronavigation, stereotaxy, awake brain surgery, and intraoperative neurophysiological monitoring, among others, have contributed to improving outcomes in this field, achieving greater disease control and excellent quality of life for patients.
Once a brain tumor has been treated, can it grow back?
Yes, all tumors, no matter how benign they may be and even when they have been completely removed and successfully treated with adjuvant therapy (when applicable), carry the risk of recurring. Therefore, follow-up with a specialist must be indefinite.
Do brain tumors metastasize?
It is extremely rare for a brain tumor to cause (secondary) tumors in other organs.
What are the most common secondary (metastatic) brain tumors?
The most frequent brain metastases originate from tumors of the lungs, breast, kidneys, lymphatic tissue, digestive system, and skin.
What is the treatment for secondary or metastatic tumors?
Yes, all tumors, no matter how benign they may be and even when they have been completely removed and successfully treated with adjuvant therapy (when applicable), carry the risk of recurring. Therefore, follow-up with a specialist must be indefinite.
Where to Find Us
Campus Santa Fe
Av. Carlos Graef Fernández 154, Col. Santa Fe, Cuajimalpa, 05300, Cd. de México.
