The eye is a complex organ, composed of many different structures with varying sensitivity to the effects of radiation. An easy way to look at the eye is to divide it into zones that can be examined with respect to their susceptibility to...
You may or may not be a viable candidate for operative surgery. Only you and your physician can make that determination, based on the size, type and placement of the optic glioma as well as your age, medical history, physical condition and...
Your genetic disposition to developing optical glioma may be your single-most-important risk factor. White people develop optical gliomas more frequently than black people do. If brain tumors run in your family, then you're at greater risk of...
Cancer occurs when cells in the body grow abnormally and uncontrollably. This uncontrolled growth leads to the formation of a tumor that can interfere with normal cell functions and cause the death of nearby cells. Brain cancer describes the...
A brain tumor is an abnormal growth by the cells in the brain. The cells reproduce themselves in an uncontrolled manner. These tumors can be benign (harmless) or malignant (cancerous). Primary brain tumors are growths that started in the brain,...
Brain tumors almost never form from neurons, because the neurons intrinsically lack the ability to divide and grow, which is a key part of cancer. Instead, many brain tumors come from cells that support and nourish the neurons. These cells, called...
The brain contains three main parts: the forebrain, the midbrain and the hindbrain. The cerebrum is the largest part of the brain. Located in the forebrain, it is divided into the frontal lobe, parietal lobe, occipital lobe and temporal lobe. The...
Brain tissue includes nerve cells and glial cells. Glial cells nourish the brain and form the myelin sheath, which is the fatty material that insulates nerve cells and speeds transmission of nerve impulses. According to the Macmillan Cancer...
The human body is made up of millions of cells. Although the basic structure of each cell is similar, the overall structure varies depending on the function of that cell. There are several different types of cells in the body that are classified...
An MRI, or magnetic resonance imaging, provides a view of the soft tissue of the body through the use of a super magnet and radiofrequency signals, reports RadiologyInfo.org. Images transmitted to a computer screen are then interpreted by a...
The expanding use of mobile phones causes concerns about increasing the risk of brain cancer. Scientists who conducted a large study on the long term effects of mobile phones on the brain published their findings in the "International Journal of...
In general nerve cells within the brain are unable to duplicate and grow, which means that most brain tumors do not arise from cells. However, there are other tissues in the brain that serve the nerve cells, and these cells can form tumors....
According to the National Cancer Institute (NCI), brain tumors are the most common solid tumor in children. Brain tumors in children can be benign (not cancer) or malignant (cancer is present). The most common malignant brain tumors in children...
Brain tumors are one of the leading childhood cancers (after leukemia and lymphoma). Gliomas are tumors that grow in certain brain cells called astrocytes, which are primary in the function of blood and nerves in the brain. In the case of rare...
Brain tumors occur in various places within the cranium or skull. Many benign tumors can threaten life but in a different way than the malignant ones. Because a tumor occupies space, it infringes on what little space the brain has within the...
The optic nerve enables people to see by translating photons of light into electrical impulses that can be interpreted by the brain. The optic nerve is the second of 12 cranial nerves that exit the brain through holes, called foramen, in the...
