Symptoms of Brain Cancer

Brain cancer symptoms may vary from person to person. Whether a brain cancer is detected early usually depends on its location within the brain. Cancers located in more important areas of the brain may cause symptoms earlier than those located in less important areas of the brain. Brain and spinal cord tumors often interfere with the specific functions of the region they develop in. For example, spinal cord tumors often cause numbness and/or weakness of both legs, and tumors of the basal ganglia typically cause abnormal movements and abnormal positioning of the body.

Tumors within any part of the brain may cause pressure to rise within the skull. Increased pressure within the skull may cause headache, nausea, vomiting, or blurred vision. Headache is probably the most common symptom of a brain tumor. It should be strongly emphasized, however, that most headaches do not represent an underlying brain tumor. None of these symptoms are specific for brain or spinal cord cancer and they all may be caused by other disorders. Less than 1% of headaches are caused by brain cancer. Approximately 10% of new onset seizures in adults are caused by brain tumors. Seizures occur in between 15% and 95% of patients, depending on the location of the tumor. Tumors are more likely to be localized and affect one area of the brain. In such cases they can cause partial seizures . In this case, a person does not lose consciousness but may experience confusion, jerking movements, tingling, or odd mental and emotional events. Generalized seizures , which can cause loss of consciousness, are less common, since they are caused by disturbances of nerve cells in diffuse areas of the brain.

Gastrointestinal symptoms, including nausea, are also common. Nausea and vomiting, in fact, often occur in children with brain tumors and in all people with brain stem cell tumors. Sometimes the only symptoms are mental changes, which may include memory loss, impaired concentration, problems with speech and reasoning, and increased sleep.