March is upon us and it is officially Brain Tumour Awareness Month. Regular readers will know that some of my favourite Twitter friends are parents of children that have sadly battled a brain tumour and passed away at very young ages. Harry Moseley's Help Harry Help Others campaign, Ellie's Fund and Joss Searchlight are just three of the campaigns that are close to my heart and I have decided to use this month to help them raise awareness and funds. All three of them have been featured on this blog before and are really inspiring: I really do encourage you to read their stories. I also suggest you read about the incredible Bugg sisters; they lost their dad to a brain tumour and are now nursing their mum through the same thing.
This post will contain lots of information about the brain and brain tumours. I will be coming up with ideas on how I will be helping the three families and I will reveal them in due course.
The Brain
*The brain controls the body. EVERYTHING involves the brain.
* It sends out electrical messages through nerve fibres, which run out of the brain and join together in the spinal cord.
* The brain and spinal cord make up the central nervous system.
* Billions of nerve cells called neurones make up the brain as well as supporting cells known as glial cells.
* The brain is surrounded by three thin sheets called the meninges.
* The brain and spinal cord are in a fluid called cerebrospinal fluid.
* The Largest part of the brain is the fore brain which is divided into left and right sides known as hemispheres. these hemispheres are then divided into lobes and each of these lobes controls a different part of the body.
* The brain has two smaller parts: the hindbind controls balance and coordination whilst the brain stem controls automatic body functions.
* The middle of the brain is the pituitary gland which produces hormones that control many of our body functions.
Brain Tumours
* Any part of the brain can be affected by a brain tumour.
* They develop from:
- Cells that make up brain tissue
- Nerves entering or leaving the brain
- The brain coverings (meninges)
* The symptoms suffered will differ depending on which part of the brain the tumour is growing in. This is because each part of the brain has a different purpose and affects different parts of us.
* Most adult brain tumours are in the forebrain, the meninges or the nerves entering and leaving the brain. Most adult brain cancers do not begin there but are generally other types of cancers that have spread to the brain. This is known as a secondary cancer.
* 60% of childhood brain tumours are in the hindbrain or brain stem. Secondary brain cancer is rare in children.
Causes of Brain Tumours
Not much is known about what causes a brain tumour but several risk factors have been identified:
* Age - Brain tumours do not discriminate: you can get them at any age. However, the older you get, the more common they get. however, some specific types are much more common in children and it is the second most common cancer in children.
* 5% of brain tumours are caused by genetics. If a parent or sibling has had a tumour of the nervous system then your risk is double that of other people.
* A weak immune system means you have an increased risk of developing a brain tumour.
* Radiation is a definite risk. Brain tumours are common in people who have had radiation treatment on their head before.
* Brain tumours are slightly more common in men then women. However Menigioma (a type of brain tumour) is more common in women.
Symptoms
* The most common brain tumour symptoms are headaches and fits. However please don't panic because not all fits and headaches mean you have a brain tumour. A fit doesn't just have to affect your whole body: it can be a jerking or twitching in your arm, hand or leg. About one in three people with a brain tumour will visit a doctor because of headaches because they generally tend to be quite bad if caused by a tumour.
* Growing tumours create pressure inside your skill. This is known as intracranial pressure. This can cause headaches, sickness and drowiness as well as fits and eye problems.
* Brain tumours press on the surrounding brain tissue. This means it will affect whichever part of the body that is controlled by that part of the brain. This means they can cause a wide variety of symptoms:
- Physcial sumptoms include weakness or numbness in particular body parts and problems with your senses.
- Mental symptoms include changes in personality, speech, memory and concentration.
Here is a list of symptoms for each part of the brain:
Frontal Lobe
* Changes in personality
* Losing your inhibitions and behaving in a way that is not normal behaviour for you
* Apathy and lack of interest in life
* Difficulty with organisation
* Irritability or aggressive behaviour
* Weakness on part of the face or one side of the body
* Difficulty walking
* Losing sense of smell
* Speech and sight problems
Temporal lobe
* Forgetting words
* Short term memory loss
* Fits which are associated with odd feelings, smells or deja vu.
Parietal Lobe
* Difficulty speaking or understanding speech
* Problems with reading or writing
* Loss of feeling in part of the body
Occipital Lobe
* Problems with sight
* Loss of vision on one side
Hindbrain (Cerebellum)
* Poor coordination
* Uncontrollable eye movement
* Sickness
* Stiff neck
* Dizziness
Brain Stem
* Poor coordination
* Drooping eyelid or mouth on one side
* Difficulty swallowing
* Difficulty speaking
* Double vision
Spinal Cord
* Pain
* Numbness
* Weak arms and legs
* Losing control of bladder and/or bowels
Pituitary Gland
* Irregular or infrequent periods
* Infertility
* Lack of energy
* Weight gain
* Mood swings
* High blood pressure
* Diabetes
* Enlarged feet or hands
Meninges
* Headaches
* Sickness
* Sight problems
* Movement problems
If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, please don't panic. If they are persistent and you are worried, please visit your GP ASAP. Tumours can grow very quickly without many symptoms so it is very important to be aware of your body and personality to know what is normal and what is not. This could save your life.
I hope this introduction to the brain and brain tumours has been informative for you. I will be writing many more blog posts on the subject throughout March so please keep reading!
For more information about Brain Tumours please visit the Cancer Research UK website (www.cancerresearchuk.org)
Or any of the following websites:
www.helpharryhelpothers.com
www.jossparkessearchlight.org
www.elliesfund.com
xxx
This post will contain lots of information about the brain and brain tumours. I will be coming up with ideas on how I will be helping the three families and I will reveal them in due course.
The Brain
*The brain controls the body. EVERYTHING involves the brain.
* It sends out electrical messages through nerve fibres, which run out of the brain and join together in the spinal cord.
* The brain and spinal cord make up the central nervous system.
* Billions of nerve cells called neurones make up the brain as well as supporting cells known as glial cells.
* The brain is surrounded by three thin sheets called the meninges.
* The brain and spinal cord are in a fluid called cerebrospinal fluid.
* The Largest part of the brain is the fore brain which is divided into left and right sides known as hemispheres. these hemispheres are then divided into lobes and each of these lobes controls a different part of the body.
* The brain has two smaller parts: the hindbind controls balance and coordination whilst the brain stem controls automatic body functions.
* The middle of the brain is the pituitary gland which produces hormones that control many of our body functions.
Brain Tumours
* Any part of the brain can be affected by a brain tumour.
* They develop from:
- Cells that make up brain tissue
- Nerves entering or leaving the brain
- The brain coverings (meninges)
* The symptoms suffered will differ depending on which part of the brain the tumour is growing in. This is because each part of the brain has a different purpose and affects different parts of us.
* Most adult brain tumours are in the forebrain, the meninges or the nerves entering and leaving the brain. Most adult brain cancers do not begin there but are generally other types of cancers that have spread to the brain. This is known as a secondary cancer.
* 60% of childhood brain tumours are in the hindbrain or brain stem. Secondary brain cancer is rare in children.
Causes of Brain Tumours
Not much is known about what causes a brain tumour but several risk factors have been identified:
* Age - Brain tumours do not discriminate: you can get them at any age. However, the older you get, the more common they get. however, some specific types are much more common in children and it is the second most common cancer in children.
* 5% of brain tumours are caused by genetics. If a parent or sibling has had a tumour of the nervous system then your risk is double that of other people.
* A weak immune system means you have an increased risk of developing a brain tumour.
* Radiation is a definite risk. Brain tumours are common in people who have had radiation treatment on their head before.
* Brain tumours are slightly more common in men then women. However Menigioma (a type of brain tumour) is more common in women.
Symptoms
* The most common brain tumour symptoms are headaches and fits. However please don't panic because not all fits and headaches mean you have a brain tumour. A fit doesn't just have to affect your whole body: it can be a jerking or twitching in your arm, hand or leg. About one in three people with a brain tumour will visit a doctor because of headaches because they generally tend to be quite bad if caused by a tumour.
* Growing tumours create pressure inside your skill. This is known as intracranial pressure. This can cause headaches, sickness and drowiness as well as fits and eye problems.
* Brain tumours press on the surrounding brain tissue. This means it will affect whichever part of the body that is controlled by that part of the brain. This means they can cause a wide variety of symptoms:
- Physcial sumptoms include weakness or numbness in particular body parts and problems with your senses.
- Mental symptoms include changes in personality, speech, memory and concentration.
Here is a list of symptoms for each part of the brain:
Frontal Lobe
* Changes in personality
* Losing your inhibitions and behaving in a way that is not normal behaviour for you
* Apathy and lack of interest in life
* Difficulty with organisation
* Irritability or aggressive behaviour
* Weakness on part of the face or one side of the body
* Difficulty walking
* Losing sense of smell
* Speech and sight problems
Temporal lobe
* Forgetting words
* Short term memory loss
* Fits which are associated with odd feelings, smells or deja vu.
Parietal Lobe
* Difficulty speaking or understanding speech
* Problems with reading or writing
* Loss of feeling in part of the body
Occipital Lobe
* Problems with sight
* Loss of vision on one side
Hindbrain (Cerebellum)
* Poor coordination
* Uncontrollable eye movement
* Sickness
* Stiff neck
* Dizziness
Brain Stem
* Poor coordination
* Drooping eyelid or mouth on one side
* Difficulty swallowing
* Difficulty speaking
* Double vision
Spinal Cord
* Pain
* Numbness
* Weak arms and legs
* Losing control of bladder and/or bowels
Pituitary Gland
* Irregular or infrequent periods
* Infertility
* Lack of energy
* Weight gain
* Mood swings
* High blood pressure
* Diabetes
* Enlarged feet or hands
Meninges
* Headaches
* Sickness
* Sight problems
* Movement problems
If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, please don't panic. If they are persistent and you are worried, please visit your GP ASAP. Tumours can grow very quickly without many symptoms so it is very important to be aware of your body and personality to know what is normal and what is not. This could save your life.
I hope this introduction to the brain and brain tumours has been informative for you. I will be writing many more blog posts on the subject throughout March so please keep reading!
For more information about Brain Tumours please visit the Cancer Research UK website (www.cancerresearchuk.org)
Or any of the following websites:
www.helpharryhelpothers.com
www.jossparkessearchlight.org
www.elliesfund.com
xxx
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