Brain Tumor Treatment

Can Brain Tumor be cured? 

Yes Absolutely! Brain Tumor can be cured. That’s what we’re here for.

What are the Treatment Options?

There are various cures for brain cancer. Here are the treatment options:

Surgery

Neuro Surgery in India aims at removing the tumor along with a few healthy tissues surrounding the same. This treatment option can considerably improve your neurological symptoms, making the other treatment options more effectively.

The traditional brain surgery, also known as a craniotomy, involved the removal of a portion of the skull to remove the tumor. The opening in the skull would then be covered using the patient’s own bone. In recent years, there has been a lot of advancement in brain tumor surgery, making it as minimally invasive as possible. Nowadays, doctors make use of cortical mapping and image-guided techniques to perfectly map the location of the tumor and perform the surgery after meticulous planning.

Apart from removing the tumor, brain tumor surgery in India also provides a tissue sample for the sake of biopsy analysis. This can help in determining whether the surgery needs to be followed by chemotherapy or radiation or not.

In cases where the tumor is located in such a place that cannot be accessed easily, surgery can’t be performed. So, the doctor might recommend alternative treatment options that will reduce the size of the tumor and slow down its growth.

Chemotherapy for Brain Tumor

Chemotherapy uses drugs which are usually given intravenously to destroy cancerous cells in the brain. These drugs are given either intravenously or orally. Chemotherapy may be given after surgery or after radiotherapy. The doctor may recommend either one single drug or a combination of drugs such as:

• Lomustine + Procarbazine + Vincristine: These three drugs are combined and given along with radiotherapy. This drug can increase the brain tumor survival rate of the patient, even if he is in stage 3 of brain cancer stages.
• Radiotherapy+ Low Dose Temodar: This combination works well for high-grade brain tumors. The treatment is usually given monthly for about 6 months to a year.
• Carmustine Drug: This drug is given in a special way called Gliadel wafers. The implant is placed in the area where the tumor has been evacuated.

The patient needs to go for an MRI brain scan once every two to three months. This will monitor the growth of cancer tumors. Duration of the MRI depends on the grade of the tumor. In case the tumor is found to be growing, alternate treatments would be recommended. 

Tumor Treating Fields / Alternating Electric Field Therapy

Being a non-invasive therapy, this treatment uses a portable device to obstruct the part of the cell which is responsible for the growth and spreading of tumor cells. This electrode device, which is called Optune, is placed outside the patient’s head, after which it generates an electric field.

This treatment works well for those who have been newly diagnosed with a high-grade brain tumor or recurring glioblastoma. It improves the survival rate of the patient, just as in chemotherapy.

The approximate cost of chemotherapy per cycle is USD 450.

Targeted Therapy

The focus of this treatment is on the particular gene, protein or tissue that is responsible for stimulating the growth and survival of the tumor. It works by blocking the growth and spreading of the tumor cells. The side effects of brain cancer treatment would be minimal with this option.

Radiotherapy for Brain Tumor

Radiotherapy for brain tumor, also known as radiotherapy, is another of the cures for brain cancer. This treatment destroys the cancerous cells in the brain by emitting high energized x-rays. It is usually recommended after surgery or along with chemotherapy. External beam radiotherapy is provided to treat a brain tumor, wherein the brain tumor radiation is given from outside the body, with the help of a machine. The various types of external beam radiotherapy used in the treatment of brain tumor include:

• Proton therapy: This therapy uses protons instead of x-rays to destroy tumor cells. It works well in cases where less radiation is required due to the location of the tumor.
• Stereotactic radiotherapy: This is recommended in cases where the tumor is located in one area of the brain. This involves the projection of high doses of radiation directly on to the tumor, without harming healthy tissues. This uses advanced technology equipment such as Modified linear accelerator machine, CyberKnife and Gamma knife.
• 3D-CRT: In this, a 3D model of the tumor is made to appear on the computer screen through CT or MRI scan images. This helps in directing the radiation beam to target the tumor while protecting the healthy tissues from high energized radiotherapy.
• The type of radiation given depends on the size of the tumor and its location.
• The approximate cost of Radiotherapy for brain tumor is USD 2500 – 5000