Though brain surgery will always be a major intervention, two important factors have contributed to the excellent chances of success that brain tumor surgery provides today. First, the ever-evolving scientific understanding of the human brain, and another, the technological advances on the surgical field. Dr. Christopher Duma is a nationally recognized neurosurgeon and this is a result of his early understanding that computer-assisted radiosurgery is the means to accurate, lower risk interventions to the brain and the nervous system.
BENIGN BRAIN TUMORS
Benign brain tumors are a group of cells that do not divide and grow like normal cells do. Benign tumors are different from the characteristic appearance of cancerous cells. Thanks to reliable diagnosis technology, widely available in Irvine, and the entire Southern California area, such as CT (computed tomography) or MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) the brain can be scanned to show great detail. This is how most benign tumors are found. The following are some important characteristics of benign brain tumors:
- Slow growth
- No invasion of the surrounding tissues or spreading to other organs
- Visible border or edge, detectable on CT scans
- Only rare development into metastatic tumors
- Relatively easy removal, and in most case, no reoccurrence after removal
Symptoms can include vision, hearing and balance difficulties; changes in concentration and memory; seizures, facial pain (trigeminal neuralgia).
MALIGNANT BRAIN TUMORS
Malignant brain tumors are fast-growing masses of cancerous cells that spread to other areas of the brain and spine (where they can cause changes in cerebrospinal fluid, for example). The majority of malignant brain tumors are secondary cancers, meaning that they spread to the brain from another part of the body. Those that start in the brain are called primary brain tumors – the most common and aggressive of these being the Glioblastoma Multiforme – and differ according to the type of brain cell affected.
Symptoms include headache, movement disorder, double vision, dizziness, seizures, bleeding in the brain, brain nerve pain, Essential Tremor, Dystonia.
BRAIN TUMOR SURGERY
Patients from Orange County and Los Angeles, California, as well as people from all over the country now have access to state-of-the-art technology for surgical brain tumor removal. Armed with the best computers and pinpoint accuracy tools such as the Gamma knife, Dr. Duma, a recognized brain surgeon, is able to map the brain with extreme precision. Gamma knife radiosurgery allows access to the most sensitive areas of the brain, and the swift and elegant execution of the delicate task of tumor removal. Brain surgery has ceased to be the intrusive, high-risk intervention (craniectomy, hemicraniectomy, craniotomy, partial lobectomy) it once was.
Dr. Duma prefers to approach brain tumor treatment from more than just one point of view, and immunotherapy, for example, is often included in the treatment plan. If you need a treatment plan that is well-fitted to your specific requirements, or if you wish to gain more information on innovative brain tumor surgery, please register on our website or call us.
