Brain tumors, the most common type of solid tumor in children under age 15, are the second most common cause of cancer death in children, the Merck Manual reports. Many types of brain tumors occur in children, differentiated by their locations and the types of cell involved. Gliomas, which occur in cells that support neurons in the brain, are the most common type of brain cancer, accounting for around 66 percent of cases, the Childhood Brain Tumor states. Astrocytomas, the most common glial cancer, makes up around 40 percent of all childhood brain tumors. The symptoms depend on the type and location of tumor.
Visual Distrubances
Around 50 percent of all childhood brain tumors first present with visual disturbances, according to the Childhood Brain Tumor Foundation. Medullablastoma, which causes 20 percent of childhood cancer and usually affects children between 5 and 7, most often boys, causes double vision. Astrocytomas, most common between ages 5 and 9, cause vision loss, rapid side-to-side movements of the eyeballs known as nystagmus and proptosis, a bulging of the eyeball, the Merck Manual states.
Increased Intracranial Pressure Symptoms
Because brain tumors take up space and crowd brain tissues, symptoms of increased pressure within the brain commonly occur in children with brain tumors. Signs of increased intracranial pressure include morning headaches, vomiting, poor coordination, irritability, weakness, tremors and seizures. Headache may improve after vomiting, the National Cancer Institute reports. Changes in personality and behavior, changes in the ability to concentrate, unusual lethargy or fatigue may also occur. Infants may experience an increase in head size called hydrocephalus and may show signs of developmental delay.
Spinal Cord Compression Symptoms
Some brain tumors cause spinal cord dysfunction. Ependymomas, the third most common type of central nervous system tumors, start in the ventricles, cerebrospinal fluid filled cavities of the brain. Around 10 percent of brain tumors in children are ependymomas, which compress the spinal cord, causing back pain and bowel and bladder incontinence, the Merck Manual reports. Difficulty walking and weakness in the legs can also occur in tumors that compress the spinal cord.
