What is Brain Cancer?

What is brain cancer? What specifically is meant by this term?

Cancer is a common disease of the human body which is characterized by the abnormal growth of cells. Diseased cells begin to grow and divide uncontrollably, resulting in an enlarging mass or tumor. Cancers are malignant tumors, more invasive and aggressive forms of tumors.

Therefore, brain cancer is a disease characterized by the growth of a malignant tumor in the brain.

What is Brain Cancer?
Are There Different Types of Brain Cancer?

Primary Brain Tumors: These are tumors that originate from the brain tissue itself. They are and important form of brain cancer but less common than other types.

Local Cancers that Involve the Brain: Some cancers can originate from other tissues outside the brain but lie in close proximity to the brain and can invade the brain as they grow and spread. Examples include malignant meningiomas, head and neck cancers such as oropharyngeal cancers, nasopharyngeal cancers, chondrosarcomas of the skull bones, etc.

Metastatic Cancers: Many cancers can metastasize, which is to spread to distant organs from their site of origin, usually by way of the bloodstream or lymphatic system. Some of these types of cancer can metastasize to the brain. Although they do not originate in the brain itself, it is cancer in the brain and therefore can cause destruction of normal brain tissue and therefore can result in neurological symptoms. Many cancers can spread to the brain, including common types such as breast cancer, lung cancer, melanoma, and others.