How is brain cancer treated?

Some of the treatments used for neurological cancers include:

• Radiation therapy: A sophisticated and effective way to treat many kinds of cancer, radiation oncology uses highly advanced technology and innovative treatment techniques to destroy cancer cells or to prevent diseased cells from growing.

• Gamma Knife: Gamma Knife radiosurgery is a state-of-the-art treatment for both benign and malignant brain tumors, arteriovenous malformations (AVMs), and functional neurological disorders.

• Surgery: Some neurological cancers are confined and accessible enough to be effectively removed surgically. Surgery is often combined with chemotherapy, radiation, or immunotherapy. Sophisticated brain mapping is used to ensure that the senses are not hindered as a result of surgery.

• Chemotherapy: Advances in the effectiveness of cancer-fighting drugs have kept chemotherapy at the forefront in the fight against cancer. Often used in combination with other therapies, chemotherapy is frequently used to combat cancers with or without radiation therapy and surgery.

• Autologous stem cell treatment (ASCT): Some cancers once considered untreatable are being successfully treated with autologous stem cell treatment. While research has shown that certain cancers are more effectively treated (and the risk of recurrence can be dramatically reduced) by treating them with higher doses of chemotherapy, that can result in bone marrow failure.

With ASCT, bone marrow failure is prevented by removing stem cells from the blood and preserving them before the patient receives chemotherapy. The stem cells are then reinfused back into the patient after chemotherapy. These stem cells then migrate to the bone marrow where they begin to produce healthy new blood cells.

• Cancer immunotherapy: The ability of the immune system to identify and destroy tumor cells has led to its use in cancer treatment. By stimulating the body's immune system, cancer cells may be destroyed without damaging healthy tissue. Cellular cancer vaccines use a patient's cells to trigger the immune system to attack cancerous cells. While traditional vaccines are used to prevent an illness from taking hold, cancer vaccines are used to prevent the existing cancer from spreading, thereby reducing the risk of recurrence.