A BRAIN tumour is lump formed of abnormal cells in the brain.
Different parts of the brain control different functions, so brain tumour symptoms will vary depending on the tumour’s location.
Because of this variation in symptoms these types of cancer can often be hard to spot.
What is a brain tumour?
A brain tumour is a growth of abnormal cells that grow on the organ and multiply and spread in an uncontrollable way.
The growths can be benign, non-cancerous, which grow slowly and if treated are unlikely to reappear.
However, cancerous brain tumours are more serious and some can start in the brain or spread there from cancer elsewhere in the body.
Brain tumours are also graded on their seriousness, with grade one and two tumours being seen as low risk.
While grade three and four tumours are seen as high risk and likely to return after treatment.
Would a brain tumour show in a blood test?
Blood tests can also help in assessing some types of brain tumours, according to neurologist Dr Peter Pressman.
Some brain tumours, such as pituitary tumours, can produce hormones that are detected in the blood, he explained in an essay on Verywell health.
If you have a pituitary tumours, you may have an abnormal concentration of hormones such as growth hormone or thyrotropin (a hormone that stimulates the thyroid gland) in your blood.
What are the symptoms of a brain tumour?
According to the NHS, the symptoms of a brain tumour depend on its severity and which part of the brain is affected.
However, there are common signs that people can look out for if they are worried.
These include severe, non-stop headaches, seizures as well as nausea, vomiting and drowsiness.
Other signs can include vision or speech problems, paralysis and even changes to a person’s taste and smell and ability to remembering things.
These symptoms can appear suddenly or develop slowly over time.
If you have one or more of these symptoms and you want to get them checked out, there are a couple of different routes you can take, according to The Brain Tumour Charity.
You can contact your GP who will be able to arrange the right tests and get you checked for a brain tumour.
Sometimes eye tests can actually discover brain tumours.
However, if the symptoms are sudden or severe, you should go to your emergency department or call 999.
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