brain tumor - recently been tested and found that i have a primary brain tumor on my occipital lobe

	Asked by Unregistered on Sun 09, Mar 2008 06:57pm :
	I have recently been tested and found that i have a primary brain tumor on my occipital lobe. They have told they think it is a slow growing tumor. They have told that i will need to have a biopsy to confirm this? It is 4cm. I have had syptoms for about 8months which they thought i had vertigo..... I was all so told that they may leave the tumor and see what it may do.. I am scared that it is so close to my brain stem. All i really want to know is there a good chance that i can recover from this as i am 35 with five children. I know there are people with other conditions that are life threatning... Please help......
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	Answer by Dr Heinrik M, MD (doctor) on Mon 10, Mar 2008 06:49pm: Hi, Unfortunately the prognosis of brain tumors is very varied, so estimates are best made as per individual. Some would have catastrophic deterioration, while others would have stable disease. The first step is indeed to check the image if it appears to be a primary lesion, a metastasis or a lymphoma. From there, the risk of the procedure is weighed with the risk of progression, and it seems your doctors do not feel that the operative risk warrants the procedure at present. Observation is a valid option, and while you may equate this with “doing nothing” , the procedure has benefited patients. What is unclear is why the surgery was not recommended, it is unlikely your tolerance for the procedure as you are fairly young, so there must be issues with resectability (the chances of removing out as much of the tumor as possible). Of course, the plan will change should there be any change in your symptoms. Hence it is critical to have a thorough evaluation of your symptoms so that slight changes can be observed.
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