Understanding Meningioma Tumors & Early Detection
- Actress Kate Walsh previously underwent surgery to remove a benign (non-cancerous) meningioma after noticing some minor symptoms and is encouraging others to be aware of any changes in their body and prioritize early detection.
- Meningioma tumors arise from the meninges the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord. Doctors recommend that you see a doctor if you have the sudden onset of seizures or changes in vision or memory as it could be a meningioma; most of the time, meningioma symptoms develop slowly over time but sometimes can require emergency care. Other symptoms may include headaches, dizziness, or weakness in the arms and legs.
- Brain tumors account for 85-90% of all primary central nervous system (CNS) tumors, according to the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).
- When it comes to brain tumors, as new treatment approaches are continually being explored through clinical trials, the standard of care for glioblastoma has remained largely consistent since 2005. It combines maximal safe surgical resection (surgery to remove as much of the cancer as possible) followed by chemotherapy and radiation.
- Making all of your doctor’s appointments for major health screenings is a good way to make sure your health is covered from all angles, whether it’s a mammogram, Pap smear, colonoscopy, screening for prostate cancer, lung cancer scan, or a skin check at the dermatologist.
Speaking on the February 27 episode of “The Kelly Clarkson Show,” the 57-year-old star, whose late mom beat breast cancer and dad passed away from lung cancer complications, recounted what led to her benign brain tumor diagnosis 10 years ago.
Read More“But we don’t know anyone who hasn’t been touched by it [cancer], which is why I was super excited to get the message out and parter with GRAIL about MCED, Multi-Cancer Detecting Test.”
In an earlier interview with SurvivorNet, Dr. William Cance, a distinguished scientist in medical affairs for GRAIL and the former chief medical and scientific officer of the American Cancer Society, explained that the test Walsh is referring to is a design based on the principle that “the tumors shed their DNA into the blood.”
“As a cancer surgeon and a cancer researcher, I’ve always thought of the cancer cells as these shameless criminals on the run from the law the law is Mother Nature,” he said in an interview with SurvivorNet. “And I view them as so arrogant that they just have to make their presence known. So, they shed DNA into the blood, and that’s how we catch them.”
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Walsh continued, “It’s a new tool. This is a great things about science and technology. There’s newness, this wasn’t around during my parents generation, it wasn’t even around when I lost a very dear friend from high school to breast cancer. …
“So, we know that early detection means you have more options for care.”
She then recounted being diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2015, which she says “thankfully, it turned out to be benign.”
Before going into detail on how her tumor was found, Walsh described herself as “very, very fortunate” and explained how she felt “really tired,” her body was “dipping,” and overall “subtle symptoms,” even thinking she had Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD).
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It was after those symptoms that she decided to see her doctor to get checked.
She added, “I know how important it is to advocate for oneself,” because before seeking medical advice she was told by people close to her dismissed as her being “just depression.”
“With any kind of early detection testing, you want to talk to your doctor, see if it’s right for you … Obviously if you have a history of family in your family, you definitely want to investigate it,” Walsh concluded.
In an earlier interview with Cosmopolitan, Walsh said her symptom of exhaustion got to the point where she could drink five cups of coffee and “still not feel awake or clear.” And then she began experiencing more “cognitive difficulties.”
“It felt like aphasia, but it wasn’t just not being able to find words; I would lose my train of thought, I wasn’t able to finish sentences, and that was when I got really alarmed,” she explained.
Walsh eventually realized something was very wrong and decided to get an MRI.
“I thought maybe it was menopausal symptoms because there are a lot of the same markers, but I really pushed to see a neurologist, I just had an instinct,” explained Walsh. “I had to really advocate, because they don’t hand out MRIs so easily, but I got an MRI and thank God I did because it turned out I had a very sizable brain tumor in my left frontal lobe. And three days later I was in surgery having it removed.”
Once she learned her diagnosis — a benign (non-cancerous) meningioma — Walsh said she became almost robotic.
“I was relieved that I could get in with a great doctor and one of the most amazing surgeons in the world, and have them take care of it,” said Walsh. “I had the MRI and three days later I was in surgery, and it was benign and they were able to get all of it. After that, I just really focused on recovery, and surrendering to that process.”
Walsh took a year to recover before returning to work, and in recent years has starred in a slew of successful shows including “Emily in Paris,” “Fargo,” and “13 Reasons Why.”
Understanding Meningiomas, Symptoms, & When To See Your Doctor
Meningiomas aren’t technically brain tumors, Dr. Suriya Jeyapalan, director of medical neuro-oncology at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, Mass., previously told SurvivorNet; they are tumors that arise from the meninges the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord. But the tumors can compress or squeeze the adjacent brain, nerves and vessels.
Most brain tumors aren’t actually cancerous, according to the American Brain Tumor Association. Less than one third about 32% of brain tumors are considered cancerous, or malignant.
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If the tumor is made up of “normal-looking cells,” that means the tumor is benign. However, those kinds of tumors may still require surgery.
The signs and symptoms of a meningioma depend on its location, according to the National Cancer Institute, and may even be subtle at first.
Even though a meningioma isn’t technically a brain tumor, the symptoms are relatively the same as other brain tumors, such as a glioblastoma. The symptoms of a brain tumor, or even brain cancer if the tumor is malignant, can frequently and easily change, Jeyapalan tells SurvivorNet.
“But for I think this is the take home message for I think a lot of patients: Brain cancer is actually really rare,” Jeyapalan explained. “Lung cancer, breast cancer, colon cancer, are much more common.”
“Everybody’s always scared about getting their brain tumor and, you know, ‘Oh, should I be using my cell phone or what not,’ and I tell them, ‘No, you should be much more scared about the fact that you’re, you know, you’re hypertensive, you’re diabetic, you have high cholesterol, you’re overweight, you’re not exercising enough,” she added.
Symptoms can include:
- Changes in vision seeing double or blurriness
- Headaches, especially ones that are worse in the morning
- Hearing loss
- Memory loss or confusion
- Loss of smell
- Seizures
It’s recommended that you see a doctor if you have the sudden onset of seizures, or changes in vision or memory as it could be a meningioma; most of the time, meningioma symptoms develop slowly over time, but sometimes can require emergency care.
Make an appointment with your doctor if you feel you have symptoms, such as headaches that worsen over time, that concern you. But most times, meningiomas are only discovered on scans for reasons that turn out to be unrelated to the tumor.
Making Sense of a Brain Tumor Diagnosis
According to the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), brain tumors account for 85-90% of all primary central nervous system (CNS) tumors. They can either be cancerous (malignant) or non-cancerous (benign), and depending on where the tumor forms on the brain, doctors determine its type, potential symptoms, and potential treatment.
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Signs and Symptoms of Brain Tumors
Brain tumors impact a person’s brain function and overall health, depending on their size, type, and location within the brain. Tumors that grow big enough and disrupt normal central nervous system functioning can press on nearby nerves, blood vessels, or other tissues. The disrupted central nervous system can present in various ways, making walking or maintaining balance difficult.
However, it’s important to know that brain tumors do not always cause symptoms.
Other signs of brain tumors may include:
- Headaches
- Difficulty speaking or thinking
- Weakness
- Behavioral changes
- Vision changes
- Seizures
- Loss of hearing
- Confusion
- Memory loss
Treatments for Brain Tumors
Treatment options for brain cancer depend on a variety of factors, including the size and type of the tumor as well as the grade of the tumor.
Surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy are options doctors use to treat brain tumors. Cancer warriors are encouraged to talk to their doctor about their situation and the best treatment options.
The prognosis for brain cancer, or how likely it is to be cured, depends on a few things, including:
- The type of brain tumor
- How fast the brain tumor is growing
- The tumor’s location
- If there are DNA changes in the cells of the brain tumor
- If the entire tumor can be removed with surgery
- Your overall health
Your doctor will be able to help you understand your specific and unique circumstances and how they relate to your prognosis.
Types of Cancerous and Non-Cancerous Brain Tumors
A brain tumor can affect you differently depending on its location and if it is cancerous. Some brain tumors are non-cancerous (or benign). According to the National Cancer Institute, some examples of these types of brain tumors include:
- Chordomas are primarily benign and slow-growing and are often found near the tailbone or where the spine meets the skull.
- Craniopharyngiomas are rare, slow-growing tumors that don’t spread to other parts of the brain or body. They form near the pituitary gland near the base of the brain.
- Gangliocytomas are rare tumors of the central nervous system that tend to form on the temporal lobe (the left or right side of the brain).
- Glomus jugulare are rare and slow-growing tumors.
- Meningiomas are rare brain tumors that usually form on the outer layer of tissue that covers the brain (dura mater).
- Pineocytomas are rare and slow-growing tumors located in the pineal gland near the middle of the brain.
- Pituitary adenomas are slow-growing brain tumors of the anterior pituitary located in the lower part of the brain.
- Schwannomas are rare tumors that grow on the cells that protect nerve cells. They are called Schwann cells.
- Acoustic neuromas (vestibular schwannoma) are slow-growing tumors that develop from the nerves that help balance and hearing.
Other brain tumors are malignant or cancerous. These kinds of tumors include:
- Gliomas are the most common form of cancerous and aggressive primary brain tumors.
- Astrocytoma (glioma) forms in astrocytes (star-shaped cells). Depending on how aggressive or fast they grow and impact brain tissue, these tumors are classified into four grades.
- Ependymomas are tumors classified into three grades depending on how aggressive or fast they grow.
- Oligodendroglioma tumors are classified into grades depending on their growth speed. Grade 2 oligodendroglioma tumors are slow-growing and can invade nearby tissue, but they may not present symptoms for many years before detection. Meanwhile, grade 3 oligodendroglioma tumors proliferate.
- Medulloblastoma tumors are classified into four different grades depending on their aggressive nature or how quickly they grow.
- Glioblastoma, which is considered a central nervous system (CNS) tumor, is the most common and aggressive brain tumor in adults.
The Importance of Cancer Screenings & Understanding Guidelines
It’s important that men and women of all ages know the facts around cancer screenings. For example, when it comes to scheduling a screening, older women sometimes may have different options depending on guidelines.
“A woman doesn’t need to come in for a pap smear every year, but can come in every three to five years, depending on her age,” Dr. Anna Beavis, a gynecological oncologist at John Hopkins Medicine, previously told SurvivorNet, regarding cervical cancer.
“I still recommend that every woman go to their [gynecologist] every year for an exam, even if a pap smear isn’t being done.”
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According to Dr. Beavis, women should start scheduling their cervical cancer screenings starting at age 21 and continue until age 65. However, even if you’re 65 years or older, that doesn’t mean you’re necessarily off the hook. In order to skip these screenings, you’ll need to have had regular pap smears for the past 10 years in order to get the all clear. These screenings are extremely important, especially since cervical cancer doesn’t present symptoms until it has advanced. By following guidelines and regularly having pap smears, your doctor can catch the disease before it has progressed.
Dr. Beavis’ recommendation echoes that of the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) guidelines, which state women starting at age 21 to age 29 should have a pap smear every three years. For women 30-years-old to age 65, guidelines recommend women should get a pap smear along with an HPV test (or an HPV test alone) every five years. The guidelines also specify which women qualify for three year screenings while others qualify for five. To determine this, it’s important to talk to your doctor as to whether you are “high-risk” of the disease or not.
Meanwhile, the USPSTF also lowered the recommended age to begin breast cancer screening to 40. The previous guidance issued in 2016 was age 50.
The American Cancer Society (ACS) suggests women should begin annual mammogram screenings for breast cancer at age 45 if they are at average risk for breast cancer.
The ACS also advises:
- Women aged 40-44 have the option to start screening with a mammogram every year
- Women aged 55 and older can switch to a mammogram every other year
- Women aged 55 and older could also choose to continue yearly mammograms
Although research suggests more young people are screening which can help catch cancer development in earlier stages, there exists the risk of over diagnosis.
Younger women, for example, have been found to have more false positive events and biopsies leading to anxiety, when compared to older women.
Overall, early screenings may take a toll on the emotional, physical, psychological, and financial aspects of a person but Dr. Paul Doria-Rose, Ph.D., chief of NCI’s Healthcare Assessment Research Branch, tells the National Cancer Institute that “more research is needed to learn how frequently some screening harms happen.”
How to Understand What’s Actually Valid Health Information Online
How can you know whether the information you read online, especially medical information, is reliable? There are a few ways:
The National Institutes of Health recommends that, as a rule, the sites you get medical information from should be sponsored by federal government agencies. Knowing who or what sponsors and hosts the website you’re reading from is important, too.
- .gov are government agencies
- .edu identifies an educational institution
- .org usually identifies nonprofit organizations
- .com identifies commercial website
Questions To Ask When Seeking Out Reliable Medical Info Online:
- Who wrote the information?
- Who reviewed it?
- When was the information written?
- What is the purpose of this website?
Dr. Jason Westin, leader of the diffuse large B-cell lymphoma research team at MD Anderson Cancer Center in the Department of Lymphoma and Myeloma, previously told SurvivorNet: “Make sure if you’re finding information on the internet about something that sounds too good to be true, talk to your doctor about it.”
Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff
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