Brain Tumor Research Paper

Brain Tumors and How They Affect Different Locations of the Brain

The effects of a brain tumor are diverse depending on where it is located. This is because there are four lobes in the brain and each lobe controls different functions. To some people this topic may seem soporific or recondite. However, learning about how a tumor forms, the symptoms it can cause, and the different ways to get rid of it can be exciting and lucid.

The exact cause of a tumor is an enigma, but scientists have scrutinized tumors and have discovered several factors that result in a higher risk of developing one. A change in the genetic structure of a cell is usually what induces a tumor. The mutation can either be inherited or caused by the environment. (Understanding

Brain Tumors). A result from the change in the genetic structure is the uncontrolled growth of the cell. People who have a higher chance of developing a tumor are those who are involved with drugs and those who work with chemicals, although it is not known exactly which chemicals are related to an increase in tumors (Causes). Another factor is if a person had received radiation to the head (Understanding Brain Tumors). Even with these factors we still do not know what really causes a tumor to form.
The location of the tumor in the brain can cause different symptoms to occur since each lobe has different tasks. A few of the things the frontal lobe is in charge of are thought, memory, and judgment. The parietal lobe is involved with orientation and recognition along with processing sensory information. Visual information is processed by the occipital lobe, and the temporal lobe is involved with hearing, language, and expression (Brain Tumor Locations and Symptoms). A tumor in the occipital lobe can cause vision to be lost partially or completely. In the temporal lobe a tumor can change one’s emotional state, in other words it can cause them to become querulous or aggressive; it can also create problems in understanding words (Brain Tumor - Symptoms and Signs). Weakened judgement, memory loss, and damaged sense of smell are some symptoms from a tumor in the frontal lobe. Tumors in the parietal lobe can be the source of difficulty speaking and not being able to write (Brain Cancer Signs and Symptoms, Complications). My group is going to engender a model of a brain to help our presentation be more didactic. We will carve it out of styrofoam and then paint each lobe a different color to make it easier to discern them from each other. The different symptoms will be on toothpicks that will be able to be stuck in the different lobes. After we teach about how a tumor is formed and what it can do, we will talk about how they can be treated.
The three ways to treat a brain tumor are surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy.

Surgery is the most common treatment used to remove a tumor, it can remove most if not all of the malformation. Some of the side effects of this treatment are an increase in the symptoms from the tumor, damage to normal brain tissue which can then cause muscle weakness and decreases in brain-controlled activities, and swelling of the brain. Chemotherapy kills or damages rapidly growing cells, although it can also affect normal tissue. Chemotherapy’s common effects are nausea, loss of energy, and hair loss. Additionally, it weakens the immune system making it easier to get an infections; and since it is given through the veins, the kidneys and the reproductive organs can be damaged. Radiation therapy has some similar side effects to chemotherapy except the effects on the kidneys, reproductive organs, and the immune system are not as severe since they are not receiving direct radiation. This treatment can cause small blood vessels in the brain to become blocked which then reduces blood flow to some areas of the brain (Long Term Side Effects of Brain Tumour Radiotherapy). Hair and skin are usually affected by radiation therapy. Permanent hair loss can be a factor and the skin can become darkened and a reddish color that needs to be protected from sunlight (Brain Cancer Symptoms, Causes, Treatment - What Are the Side Effects of Brain Cancer Treatment?). Even though the treatments get rid of the tumor, the effects from them are sometimes just as bad and can produce permanent

repercussions.
Tumors are not something to be taken lightly, they can cause many problems and even when treatment is given for them serious side effects can still occur. From this project I have learned that there are many different symptoms and the effects can vary depending on where the tumor is located and how big and fast it grows. Though there is nothing known yet for what we can do to keep a tumor from forming we can do all we can to make the chances of one forming low.