Childhood Cancer Facts

Pediatric Brain Tumors

Incidence:

• 1,500 children under the age of sixteen are newly diagnosed with a Brain Tumor in the United States each year. The incidence of brain tumors is on the rise.

Survival Rate:

• Overall, Low. Depends on type, grade, and size of the tumor and its location on the brain.

Causes:

• The cause of why Brain Tumors occur is still unknown.

Description:

• Brain cancers account for 15% of pediatric cancers. They are the most common types of solid cancer in children. Brain tumors are abnormal growths of tissue found inside the skull. Since the brain controls learning, memory, senses, emotions, muscles, organs, and blood vessels, the beginning symptoms can vary and be debilitating. Certain types of brain tumors are more likely to occur in children because pediatric brain tumors usually arise from "young cells". Common pediatric brain tumors are; medulloblastoma, ependymoma, astrocytoma, brain stem and optic nerve glioma.

Current Treatment Options:

• Treatment is determined by the child's age, type of diagnosis and the tumor location. Brain Tumors are difficult to treat. Surgery and radiation therapy is effective but limited, due to the risk of the surrounding normal brain tissue. Surgery to remove the tumor is not always possible because it may be inaccessible or it may damage parts of the brain necessary for functioning. Chemotherapy has had only minimal success.