Brain Tumors

The term brain tumor is a generic one, describing a wide variety of entities. These span the range of biological behavior, from benign to malignant.

Brain tumors may be classified in several different ways. The most commonly used scheme is according to the cell of origin. The cell type (known as histology) determines the biologic behavior of the tumor and has a great bearing on the prognosis. No single classification by cell type is universally agreed upon. Another approach is by the location of the tumor, which determines the symptoms and neurologic deficits produced, as well as the safety of its resectability (if it may be resected at all). In practice, both methods of classification are important.

Browse this section for an in-depth look at major tumor types, a list of symptoms and treatment methods.