Brain stem tumor

	WikiDoc Resources for Brain stem tumor
Articles
Most recent articles on Brain stem tumor Most cited articles on Brain stem tumor Review articles on Brain stem tumor Articles on Brain stem tumor in N Eng J Med, Lancet, BMJ
Media
Powerpoint slides on Brain stem tumor Images of Brain stem tumor Photos of Brain stem tumor Podcasts & MP3s on Brain stem tumor Videos on Brain stem tumor
Evidence Based Medicine
Cochrane Collaboration on Brain stem tumor Bandolier on Brain stem tumor TRIP on Brain stem tumor
Clinical Trials
Ongoing Trials on Brain stem tumor at Clinical Trials.gov Trial results on Brain stem tumor Clinical Trials on Brain stem tumor at Google
Guidelines / Policies / Govt
US National Guidelines Clearinghouse on Brain stem tumor NICE Guidance on Brain stem tumor NHS PRODIGY Guidance FDA on Brain stem tumor CDC on Brain stem tumor
Books
Books on Brain stem tumor
News
Brain stem tumor in the news Be alerted to news on Brain stem tumor News trends on Brain stem tumor
Commentary
Blogs on Brain stem tumor
Definitions
Definitions of Brain stem tumor
Patient Resources / Community
Patient resources on Brain stem tumor Discussion groups on Brain stem tumor Patient Handouts on Brain stem tumor Directions to Hospitals Treating Brain stem tumor Risk calculators and risk factors for Brain stem tumor
Healthcare Provider Resources
Symptoms of Brain stem tumor Causes & Risk Factors for Brain stem tumor Diagnostic studies for Brain stem tumor Treatment of Brain stem tumor
Continuing Medical Education (CME)
CME Programs on Brain stem tumor
International
Brain stem tumor en Espanol Brain stem tumor en Francais
Business
Brain stem tumor in the Marketplace Patents on Brain stem tumor
Experimental / Informatics
List of terms related to Brain stem tumor

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]

Overview

A brain stem tumor is a tumor in the part of the brain that connects to the spinal cord (the brain stem).

Types of brain stem tumors

The most common form of brainstem tumor is the brainstem glioma.

Symptoms

The symptoms of brain stem tumors vary greatly and can include ataxia, cranial nerve palsy, headaches, problems with speech and swallowing, hearing loss, weakness, hemiparesis, vision abnormalities, ptosis, and behavioral changes. Another possible symptom is vomiting. Headaches related to brainstem tumors may be worse shortly after waking up in the morning.^[1]

Diagnosis

An MRI is better than a CT scan when a brainstem tumor is in the differential diagnosis.

Treatment and prognosis

Treatment typically consists of radiotherapy and steroids for palliation of symptoms.^{[citation needed]} Radiotherapy may result in minimally extended survival time.^{[citation needed]} Prognosis is very poor, with only 37% of treated patients surviving one year or more.^{[citation needed]} Topotecan has been studied in the treatment of brainstem glioma,^{[citation needed]} otherwise, chemotherapy is probably ineffective, though further study is needed.^[2]

References

External links

Brain stem tumor entry in the public domain NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms

[1] ttp://neurosurgery.mgh.harvard.edu/abta/primer.htm^{[full citation needed]}

[2] Brainstem Gliomas~treatment at eMedicine

[1]

[2]