Brain Cancer or Brain Tumor

My father had brain tumors on the left side of his brain. The first symptoms which led to diagnosis was loss of coordination in his right side. Before diagnosis he had been losing strength, and feeling tired. No headaches or sight problems.

My husband was diagnosed with a brain tumor 2 1/2 years ago. His symptom was blocked vision. He has had 2 surgeries and gone through radiation. His is benign, thank God. Regardless, it is a very scary ordeal. His latest MRI was inconclusive so he is in limbo until the next.
My recommendation is to find a neurosurgeon you 100% trust and like. You need to be on the same page as your doctor as you (or whoever it is) goes through the process.
Please PM if you have any specific questions or need any support!!

My husband was diagnosed with a brain tumor 3 yrs ago this coming August. I didn't see any symptoms, but with hindsight being 20/20, he realized he had more frequent headaches and memory loss. The symptoms that had me taking him to the ER were stroke-like. He was sleeping on the couch and when he woke up he came to find me in the kitchen. He had garbled speech (I couldn't understand anything) and he kept flexing his hand. I had him lay back on the couch and asked him questions, which he answered in that strange speech. I then noticed the right side of his face wasn't moving. I had him smile, and the right side really didn't move. After about 8 minutes, he was back to his old self with no memory of this happening except that he laid down with a terrible headache. I let it go, but when it happened again the next night, I rushed him to the emergency room. The doctors did a CT and found a Twinkie sized tumor on the left side of his brain and the symptoms I had seen were seizures. He had surgery, which turned into only a biopsy because his tumor was so big and had worked it's way into all the nooks and crannies of his brain. His tumor is a stage 3 astrocytoma, not cancerous now, but could be in the future. They treated him with a year of chemo and 6 weeks of radiation. A few weeks after the radiation, he was back at work and was back to driving on his own in 7 months. The only lasting effects (besides the scar hidden by his hair) are a loss of memory of the summer before the tumor (he remembers the week before, but nothing in the few months before that), some difficulty with words if he is thinking too fast, and headaches (he can't bend over too much or be too stressed out or he pays for it with headaches). Oh and MRIs every 3 months. His tumor is "dead" but they are watching for it to come back so that they can jump on it.

You live not too far from us, we went to Jefferson in Center City Philadelphia and they were wonderful (we live about 45 mins from there). Good luck and feel free to private message me if you have any questions. Brain tumor is such a scary set of words, but we are living with it and so can you.

T.

**Sorry, my husband read this and reminded me he has a stage 2 astrocytoma, not stage 3. Stage 3 would be cancerous.**

There are different types of brain tumors and not all are malignant. Treatment and success varies greatly depending on the location and whether it's benign or not. My mother had an aplastic astrocytoma that originated deep in the brain. It was detrimental, but it was shocking how huge it was before she had any symptoms. The tumors on the outside of the brain or in the lining are far more easy to detect and remove. The brain continues to be a mystery organ though, and people doctors thought would certainly die from brain cancer have lived for years after diagnosis and treatment. Headaches, seizures, personality changes, loss of mobility or balance -those are the biggies for warning signs of a brain tumor, but they can also be indicative of a number of other health issues. I hope you don't have a brain tumor, but be proactive if you do, and realize it's not necessarily a death sentence!

Hi my husband's step brother was diagnosed with a brain tumor and had to have an operation. They successfully removed the tumor and now he's just like any other teenager. Best of luck with whatever your situation is.

I'm doubt this relieves your anxiety but I have a friend who had a lemon-sized malignant brain tumor. He only found out because he had a debilitating headache and his wife took him to the hospital. They did an MRI and he was in surgery within the week. No previous symptoms.

I should add... the doctors were able to remove the tumor and he is doing great.

My youngest brother was diagnosed with a cancerous brain tumor when he was 6 years old. He had really bad headaches where he couldn't tolerate bright light or loud noises, and he would throw up. Usually he would feel better for a little while after throwing up, then the headache would come back. This happened every day for a few days, and my M. took him to the doctor. The doctor thought it was migraines, but had him get an MRI just to be sure; it turned out to be a tumor. He had it removed three days later, but he had to go to the emergency room because he became lethergic and had a seizure when he was in the ER. A scan revealed that the tumor started bleeding and putting pressure on his brain, so they did emergency surgery that night. They removed most of the tumor, found out it was malignant, and he had to go through radiation and chemotherapy for about eight or nine months. He is 20 now and the cancer is gone and hasn't come back. He is mentally and physically disabled and will never be able to live on his own, but he is alive and cancer-free.

I don't know this person however he is a really good friend to my sis & my BIL are bfs,he is young he already had brain surgery but the tumor is too large to completly be removed & alot of it has attached itself so removing is out of the question he is now undergoing treatment radiation or chemo don't know.His symptoms where headaches