Solvil

DeScenDanTs of the CanCers

It's been some time since I last wrote a blog. Was msn-ing my friend yesterday and she was saying that I can write anything, even if it is not related to me. Just whether readers will be bored or not, as readers are more curious about your happening. Very true.
Anyway, I decided to search the web for information on tongue cancer and brain tumors to put in this piece of blog.

What is tongue cancer?
There are two parts to your tongue, the oral tongue and the base of the tongue. Cancer can develop in either part. The oral tongue is the part you see when you ‘poke your tongue out’ at someone. This is the front two thirds of your tongue. Cancers that develop in this part of the tongue come under a group of cancers called mouth (oral) cancer. The base of the tongue is the back third of the tongue. This part is very near your throat (pharynx). Cancers that develop in this part are called oropharyngeal cancers (pronounced oar-o-farin-gee-al). ~ Think she got it at the base of the tongue?

Types of tongue cancer
The most common type of tongue cancer is squamous cell carcinoma (SCCA). Squamous cells are the flat, skin-like cells that cover the lining of the mouth, nose, larynx, thyroid and throat. Squamous cell carcinoma is the name given to a cancer that starts in these cells.

Symptoms
The symptoms of tongue cancer may include:
· A red or white patch on the tongue, that will not go away
· A sore throat that does not go away
· A sore spot on the tongue that does not go away
· Pain when swallowing
· Numbness in the mouth that will not go away
· Unexplained bleeding from the tongue (that is, not caused by biting your tongue or other injury)
· Pain in the ear (rare)

Causes
We don’t know the exact causes of most head and neck cancers, but several risk factors have been identified. Smoking tobacco (cigarettes, cigars and pipes) and drinking a lot of alcohol are the main risk factors for cancers of the head and neck in the western world. Chewing tobacco or betal quid with tobacco is very common in parts of Asia and is known to be a main cause of mouth (including tongue), gullet (oesophageal) and throat (pharyngeal) cancers in these countries. Other definite risk factors include:
- Poor diet
- Having a weakened immune system
- Being exposed to some chemicals
· Viruses
· Acid reflux
- Sunlight

Treatment
As with many types of cancer, diagnosing your cancer early means it will be easier to control and possibly cure it. ~ Haahaahaa...
Treating tongue cancer will depend on the size of the cancer and whether or not it has spread to the lymph nodes in your neck. You may have:
· Surgery
· Radiotherapy
· Chemotherapy

You may have one of these or a combination of treatments. The best treatment for very small tongue cancers is surgery. For larger tumours that have spread to the lymph nodes in the neck, you will most likely have a combination of surgery and radiotheraphy. This means having an operation to remove the cancer from your tongue and the lymph nodes in your neck. You may need to have all the nodes on one or both sides of your neck removed. You may hear your doctor call this operation a radical neck dissection. It lowers the risk of your cancer coming back in the future. You will then have a course of radiotherapy to help get rid of any cancer cells left behind.If your cancer has grown so big that it affects most of your tongue, you may need to have an operation to remove your tongue (glossectomy). This is a big operation and many doctors may suggest that you first try radiotherapy and chemotherapy to shrink the cancer. If this works, you may not need such major surgery.If you do have this operation, it will permanently change your ability to speak and swallow. It will also affect the way you look. This is very hard to cope with and you are likely to need a lot of support and help following your operation. ~ She went for minor surgery and radiotherapy with 95% recovery. Got a relapse within a year (talking about recovery!) and got to remove half her tongue and whole of left nodes removed and radiotherapy again for fear of spreading. Got great difficulty speaking, eating and even drinking after that! Still didn't make it after going through so much agony. Is there any point in undergoing treatments?
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Facts about Brain Tumors
Metastatic brain tumors, cancer that spreads from other parts of the body to the brain, are the most common types of brain tumors. They occur in 10-15% of people with cancer. Primary brain tumors generally do not metastasize to other parts of the body. ~ Well, he got the latter uncommon one. Got 2 somemore.

There are over 120 different types of brain tumors, which make effective treatment complicated. They can be malignant or non-malignant (benign), and in either case, can be just as injurious or life threatening. At present, the standard treatments for brain tumors include surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy. These may be used either individually or in combination. ~ Malignant and is recommended to go for the chemotherapy before deciding if have to go for the radiation therapy (which might cause brain damage and/or mental problems).

There are currently no known causes of brain tumors, however, epidemiological studies are ongoing. Complete and accurate data on all primary brain tumors is needed to provide the foundation for investigations of its causes and research leading to improved diagnosis and treatment. ~ Ya lor, doctors have been unable to say the cause of it and is saying he might be just plain unlucky. Hahaha... Funny that the word "unlucky" came out from them.

Brain tumors have no socio-economic boundaries and do not discriminate among gender or ethnicity.
The cure rate for most brain tumors is significantly lower than that for many other types of cancer. ~ Approximately 3years if undergo successful treatments. Estimated 8 sessions. Half to a year if untreated.

Grade - benign or malignant?
Brain tumours are put into groups according to how fast they are likely to grow. There are 4 groups called grades 1-4. The cells are examined under a microscope. The more normal they look, the more slowly the brain tumour is likely to develop and the lower the grade. The more abnormal the cells look, the more quickly the brain tumour is likely to grow and the higher the grade. Low grade gliomas (grade 1 and grade 2) are the slowest growing brain tumours. You may have been told you have a benign tumour or a malignant tumour. As a rule of thumb, low grade tumours are regarded as benign and high grade as malignant.
By benign, we generally mean
· The tumour is relatively slow growing
· It is less likely to come back if it is completely removed
· It is not likely to spread to other parts of the brain or spinal cord
· It may just need surgery and not radiotherapy or chemotherapy as well

By malignant, we generally mean
· The tumour is relatively fast growing
· It is likely to come back after surgery, even if completely removed
· It may spread to other parts of the brain or spinal cord
· It cannot just be treated with surgery and will need radiotherapy or chemotherapy to try to stop it from coming back.
With other types of cancer, these black and white explanations of benign and malignant work well. But with brain tumours, there are a lot of grey areas.

Wow... this is a very long blog....