Brain Tumor Surgery
What are the Available treatments for Brain Tumor Surgery?
Overview
Making a decision about brain tumor treatment can be overwhelming. Within a short period of time, the patient will be called upon to make critical decisions about the future course of action & which may often be confusing & frightening. It is therefore important that the brain tumor patient works with the medical team in order to determine the best suitable treatment plan for them. In order to effectively work with the healthcare team, brain tumor surgery patients must maintain a notebook & schedule planner so as to tract relevant questions, notes, side effects & information derived from research over the internet.
Initial Appointment for Brain Tumor Surgery
It will also be helpful for the brain tumor patient to bring along a friend or family member for the initial appointment in order to manage all information. Brain tumor surgery patients should also understand how to extract information from the neurosurgeon for the questions bothering them since there may not be enough time for them to ponder at the last moment. Therefore, it would be sensible of them to make a list of what they would like to know & find out about their brain tumor condition during the initial appointment. They should ask these questions upfront & maintain a productive relationship with the neurosurgeon.
Factors Determining the Type of Brain Tumor Surgery Treatment
Treatment Options for Brain Tumors
Treatment options for brain tumors include the following:
- Antiepileptic / Antiseizure Drugs (AEDs)
- Steroids
- Brain Tumor Surgery
Most often, low-grade brain tumors like grade I & grade II are not aggressive & therefore usually treated with watchful monitoring or brain tumor surgery. Although all types of brain tumors are monitored with repeated scans, grade II tumors are more closely watched after surgical intervention & over time in order to make sure that they do not recur. High grades of brain tumors like grade III & grade IV are malignant & grow very quickly. They are also more difficult to remove & often require additional treatments including chemotherapy, radiation therapy or even clinical trials if they were available. Moreover, microscopic brain tumor cells can also remain after brain tumor surgery & may grow back in some cases. Therefore, all brain tumor treatments are intended to prolong & improve the patients’ life for as long as it is possible.
Additional Treatment Options for High-Grade Brain Tumors
Following are the additional treatment options for grade III & grade IV brain tumors.
Radiation Therapy – These include x-rays & other types of radiations which can either delay or destroy brain tumor growth.
Chemotherapy – This is using special drugs which are designed to rapidly kill malignant brain tumor cells. These can either be administered orally or intravenously.
Targeted Therapy – These also include drugs which are focused on specific elements of cells, like pathways or molecules which are required for cell growth. Specific factors like these are targeted in this therapy.
Tumor Treating Fields – These are wearable devices which locally or regionally deliver treatments producing electric fields meant to disrupt rapid cell division exhibited by cancerous cells. They are designed to create ‘wave-like’ electric fields which travel across regions of application in differing directions. Since structures within dividing cancerous cells possess electric charge, these electric fields can interact with them.
Long-Term Planning for Brain Tumor Treatments
All brain tumor patients must develop a treatment plan in discussion with the healthcare team. This should not just include immediate short-term treatments but also for recovery & long-term management of the condition including the following:
- Rehabilitation
- Continuous Follow-Up Care
- Supportive / Palliative Care
Hospice care is also recommended in cases where the patient is unlikely to live for more than 6 months. This will involve caring on all aspects including those required by the family. This is all about making the patient feel comfortable including caring at home, caring at a nursing home or caring at a hospice facility. Most often multiple caregivers are involved in hospice care where all providers work together in order to support the main caregiver, meet the patient & fulfill needs of the family while significantly reducing suffering for all those involved.
Best Brain Tumor Surgery
Although calculating cost of brain tumor treatments is a complicated job because it not just involves treatment but management as well, the type, location, size & the number of combined treatment options will make a great difference. While Brain Tumor Surgery Cost in India would range in-between $8,000 to $9,000, availing similar surgical intervention in UK or USA would cost anywhere in-between $50,000 to $700,000. Factually speaking, cost of brain tumor surgery in India is just a fraction of what it would cost in the developed western world, without having to compromise on the quality of treatment.