Brain tumour symptoms: What are the signs of a brain tumour?

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Approximately one in 69 UK males and one in 65 UK females will be diagnosed with a brain, other central nervous system or intracranial tumour in their lifetime. Only three percent of these are preventable. But how can you tell if you have a brain tumour? Express.co.uk talks you through the most common brain tumour symptoms.

A brain tumour is a growth of cells in the brain which multiply abnormally.

Grade one and two tumours grow slower and are less likely to grow back after treatment, this is because they are mostly non-cancerous.

Grade three and four tumours are more dangerous because they are cancerous and more likely to spread and come back.

Around 50 percent of brain tumours are cancerous.

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Brain tumours can affect people of any age but are most common in older adults.

Most happen in older adults aged between 85 and 89, but some types of brain tumour are most common in children.

There are several risk factors which make you more likely to develop a brain tumour.

For example, about two percent of brain tumours were caused by exposure to radiation.

Family history and genetic conditions such as tuberous sclerosis and Turner syndrome can also increase the risk.

There are plenty of treatments available for brain tumours, but which one you get depends on a number of things.

Different types of tumour will be treated differently and its size and location will impact what treatment is used.

Treatments range from steroids and medicines to surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy.

But how do you know if you have a brain tumour to begin with?

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Brain tumour symptoms

You may experience some telling symptoms if you have a brain tumour, and it is important to see a GP straight away if you do.

The symptoms of a brain tumour differ depending on which part of the brain is affected, but common symptoms include:

  • headaches
  • seizures (fits)
  • persistently feeling sick (nausea), being sick (vomiting) and drowsiness
  • mental or behavioural changes, such as memory problems or changes in personality
  • progressive weakness or paralysis on one side of the body
  • vision or speech problems

Sometimes symptoms come on very slowly and you won’t notice them to begin with.

Look out for slight changes in your health such as experiencing a different type of headache from the one you normally get.

For example, maybe the headache is just on one side or the pain is slightly different.

Even if you think it isn’t a brain tumour, you must get these things checked.

If your GP can’t identify a more likely cause such as migraine, you may be referred to a neurologist for tests and scans.

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