Brain Cancer Therapy

Question: Can someone who had brain cancer at age 13 and received radiation therapy for it still have kids as an adult? My boyfriend and I have been together for almost 9 months now. Things are going very well, we seem to be close. He had brain cancer around age 13 and received radiation therapy to get rid of it. Could this affect his ability to have kids now? He has used the pull out method with every one of his girlfriends whether or not they were on the pill. He's 37 and hasn't gotten anyone pregnant yet, doesn't it seem like he should have gotten someone pregnant by now? We have talked about it and he thinks he has good sperm. Would it be right of me to ask him to get his sperm checked? I would still want to be with him even if his sperm had problems it would just be nice to know.

Answer: First off... He probably only had radiation to his brain. If he had local radiation, his fertility is probably fine. If he had total body irradiation, that's a different story. It isn't wrong of you to want to know. If I were in a serious relationship that might end up with trying to have kids, I would want to know if both of us were A OK... so my suggestion is this... suggest that he go get tested, as will you ... to make sure you both have the opportunity to create children if you so desire. That way he doesn't feel all alone... Also, you may get him genetically tested, to make sure he won't be passing along a gene for brain cancer to your kids. The insurance should pay for this, and this is supremely important... He'll probably understand, as he wouldn't want his kids to exeriance what he did.

Question: Brain Cancer and Radio Therapy, please help? A year ago, we found out that my grampa has lung cancer and another tumor on the supra renal, But as he was 70 years, we decided not to give him any therapy because it will only make him feel worse and at this age it's useless specially that he is very nervous and doesn't listen to anyone and we decided not to tell him too...and he live a good year he went to work and everything...from about a month, he started suffering, and now we found out he has brain cancer, so doctors said that this one, if not treated, it could be very hard on him and everyone around him, so we decided to give him radio therapy next week, I want to know all about radio therapy? and if he decided not to continue the sessions would it be worse? and could it kill him, i mean the radio??? how bad could it go??? THANK YOU, REALLY APPRECIATE IT

Answer: well from experience I can tell you it killed my mother inlaw.. She was only 60 when diagnosed with lung and brain cancer... She had kemo first and then they gave her radiation on top of it and she died within 3 weeks of being admitted to the hospital for the first initial tests to see what was wrong with her in the first place...I think the results from either type of treatments depends on the individual themselves...I would suggest alternative treatment.. like "cancer institues" etc... where they work with diet etc Good Luck

Question: i am staying at work with someone taking radiation therapy for brain cancer, does it affect my fertililty?

Answer: maybe maybe not

Question: What is to come next with a brain cancer diagnosis? Back in June we found out that my father has brain cancer. He originally had melanoma which then spread to the rest of his body, but the brain is the doctors' main focus. In July he had a Grand Mal seizure and was hospitalized for some time, then went to a nursing home for about 6 weeks while he underwent radiation therapy. He is now at home with me and I am caring for him 24/7. He's also currently taking Temodar (chemo) but the doctors are not very optimistic. I am just wondering what is to come, what do I need to be thinking about? What will happen mentally and physically to him? How do I know when things are really getting bad? I have a little bit, but not much of an idea of what will happen, as he already is having short term memory loss, vision loss, etc. I am interested in hearing from people who have been through this before with their own families. Thanks!

Answer: I'm sorry for your situation, very sorry. He's probably dying. Mets to the brain are usually the terminal stage for people with cancer. Melanoma in particular is very dangerous because it metasticizes to the brain easily compared to other cancers. The chemo may help, but brain mets are usally a very bad sign, and show that the cancer is very advanced. Depending on where it is in the brain, he may lose much of his cognitive function, he may forget things, he may not be able to do simple tasks. It's very hard to tell you what to expect, but you could be looking at him getting what looks like dementia. And then again, you may not--brain tumors can be very strange. He most likely will deteriorate though, and as the tumors spread and grow, whatever you're seeing in his behavior or inability to function will get worse. I recommend you look into hospice or a visiting nurse program eventually, as caring for someone 24/7 is so much for one person to handle--you need to have a life of your own, consider hospice.

Question: How would a person participate in alternative cancer therapies if radiation does not work? This would be for brain cancer. I have seen altervative therapies but how does one go about participating

Answer: google clinical trials.

Question: Any advice for brain cancer radiation? My mom, was diagnosed with brain cancer. She will be undergoing radiation therapy starting Monday, September 22nd. I was wondering if any of you out there have any advice, or suggestions, or anything that can help us with this. Thank you.

Answer: Be prepared for hair loss in any area of the scalp that is receiving radiation, many people will either cut their hair very short or just shave it all together to avoid having it fall out in clumps. It will eventually grow back once radiation is finished, but be patient, it can take a little while. Also, sometimes the skin can get sensitive and/or dry. Try switching to a baby shampoo until the skin is less sensitive. Keep the doctor up to date with any symptoms that may come up such as headaches, etc. They usually can give you something to help get you (your mom) through the treatments. Keep a positive outlook, it really does help. Good Luck

Question: unable to use hand with brain cancer? my uncle has brain cancer/tumor (has had radio. therapy in past) and now his hand is swelling and shaking so he cannot use it, any idea what that is?

Answer: First off...I'm sorry to hear that you have to go through this cancer journey too. Its hard to watch a loved one go through this. I recently lost my brother to lung cancer that went to his brain. He lost the use of his right arm due to the pressure of the tumor in his brain...his arm swelled very large due to lymphoma. He was really close to the end of his journey though when this happened as the rads and chemo were no longer working for him...eventually, he lost all use of his right side as the tumor grew. I wish you success in your Uncle's fight and pray for strength and endurance for you folks.God bless you and yours.

Question: how can one use alternative therapies to suppress the growth of brain cancer ?

Answer: How? I'd say by going to a naturopath or holistic medicine specialist and letting them guide you thru the process.

Question: Does anyone have any stories on the success of holistic cancer therapy vs. chemotherapy? I've heard a lot of people talk about how cancer can be completely avoided by not only not smoking, or drinking.. But by eating healthy foods free from toxins or artificial steroids and stimulants and such. Breast cancer runs in my family... And my poor aunt's last year of her life once cancer had been diagnosed was miserable because of constant chemotherapy that made her nothing but even MORE sick. It didn't help her a bit, and neither did the operations. When my grandmother had breast cancer before that, there had been a lot of speculation that when the doctors did the biopsy in the first place, the cutting of those cancer cells is what allowed it to spread throughout her blood stream and quickly to her brain and what caused her to die of brain cancer when she was originally diagnosed with breast cancer only. After seeing my loved ones stricken down with this, and knowing that MORE women in my family face the same threat.. I don't really trust chemotherapy and surgeries to cure cancer, and I want to know what I can do, and what I can admonish THEM to do to help relieve our risk, and God forbid.. If anyone else comes down with it to possibly cure them instead of make the last year and a half of their lives miserable like my poor grandmother and aunt. Do you know of anyone who has been cured of cancer either through holistic treatments? Or are you sure and adamant that the USA's current standard of chemotherapy and surgery is still the best way? Also.. As a bonus question: If you do think that holistic treatments are better, then why, in your opinion, are they considered "illegal" to market as treatment here in the USA?

Answer: My wife had breast cancer and went through 27 weeks of chemotherapy, had surgery and then 6.5 weeks of radiation. She also had a holistic approach to her treatments too that included: Energy work (using the hands and energy to heal the body) Supplements (to cope with all treatments) Massages Prayer But she did not depend upon holistic treatments only, otherwise she would be dead now or close to it. Her friend that does the energy work had breast cancer also, she is a certified healer with a degree in doing energy work. When she was diagnosed with her breast cancer it was at stage 1 (which is very small) and she did all the things recommended to survive and destroy cancer using energy work and eating things to combat the disease. After nine months she had a test done to see where she was at. The cancer had grown and it was now at stage 2 a. It did not help her at all. She then decided to get chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation. She is alive now and cancer free for seven years. Treatment for breast cancer is harsh. Your body is exposed to very toxic drugs and radiation that has the possibility of giving you cancer too, and then we needed a mastectomy to remove the cancer from her body. But my wife is alive right now because of it. A co-workers friend's wife's mom died from breast cancer, her twin sister died from breast cancer and she saw what cancer did to them and decided to have both her breasts removed. It is a tough choice to make, but I am glad we chose the traditional methods of fighting breast cancer. My wife is my whole life, and it was hard to see her experience the treatments but now it is over and I can hug her and love her now. If she had no treatments she would be dead now. But each person must make up their own decision, my wife's friend made the choice to go through treatments because the holistic methods were NOT working and she is alive today. My co-workers wife made the choice to get a double mastectomy because she had personal experience in seeing her sister die of the disease. We can either make the choices to fight cancer traditionally and live or the alternative is to die from the disease. The option we took used the best methods of each for a great outcome. I know and understand what the treatments do to a person, I wish there was some other road to take with this terrible disease, but if you choose life unfortunately it involves possible chemotherapy, surgery, and/or radiation.

Question: Life expectancy of brain cancer? My mother has brain cancer, and I was wondering what the average life expectancy is. The tumor she had before was in an unoperable area, and they cannot opperate. They are going to try using chemo therapy, they've used radiation once before to shrink the tumor. Back then they mistakenly said that it was benign, though it was malignant the entire time. anyone have any kinds of statistics about it, or anybody who knows a bit more about have an idea of how much time...? I know it's not something that you can just say, but if you have an idea...

Answer: I'm Really Sorry, I don't know much about brain cancer. I did know a woman that had brain cancer, also inoperable. She was on chemo and things went really well. she was told she was ok..then about five years later they found cancer again. Once again she was on chemo...That happened about ten years ago..Now she is holding down a job and doing well. The doctor's can't even determine how long someone has. We found out my husband had cancer in October. The doctor's said he had about five years to live.. He passed away in January. Less than three months.. I will keep you and your mom in my prayers..

Question: If they had a drug that fought terminal brain cancer, why would they ban it? A study by Complutense University of Madrid found the active chemical in marijuana promotes the death of brain cancer cells by essentially helping them feed upon themselves in a process called autophagy. The research team discovered that cannabinoids such as THC had anticancer effects in mice with human brain cancer cells and in people with brain tumors. When mice with the human brain cancer cells received the THC, the tumor shrank. Using electron microscopes to analyze brain tissue taken both before and after a 26- to 30-day THC treatment regimen, the researchers found that THC eliminated cancer cells while leaving healthy cells intact. The patients did not have any toxic effects from the treatment; previous studies of THC for the treatment of cancer have also found the therapy to be well tolerated. However, the mechanisms which promote THC's tumor cell–killing action are unknown. http://www.forbes.com/fdc/welcome_mjx.shtml http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/04/02/health/webmd/main4913095.shtml?source=RSSattr=Health_4913095 Not to mention it promotes neuron growth. http://english.ohmynews.com/articleview/article_view.asp?menu=c10400&no=253377&rel_no=1 The answer is racism. The reason Marijuana was originally banned was because "it can make a black man look at a white woman twice"

Answer: For the same reason they load our food with sugar, then make $$$$$$$$$$$$ selling medicine to diabetics. The criminal Elites and big fat corps. don't care about anything but money and power. Regards.

Question: Should I write a book about my experience beating brain cancer? I was diagnosed with a rare and deadly tumor in the fourth ventricle of my brain called an Ependymoma at the age of 19. After two surgeries the tumor was removed. Three years later the tumor came back and I had surgery followed by 6 weeks of daily radiation therapy. I am now cancer free and I have no major deficits unlike the majority of ependymoma survivors. I feel very strongly about sharing my story but am wondering if it's worth it. I haven't found very many books on cancer survivors, and none with the type of tumor I had. Would this be a good avenue to pursue? Thanks for your time.

Answer: You should write a book about your experience and your victory of cancer. Imagine when you were diagnosed with cancer and nobody had written about what kind of cancer you had. You could make it about beating cancer in general, and as you develop the book add your cancer to the equation. I have read many books on cancer that are uplifting. Not just breast cancer but all cancers in general. You know sometimes a good uplifting book is just what you need. So, begin and see where it takes you, no harm done and who knows you could make somebody's day. Be sure to mention us in the introduction of the book thanking Yahoo Answerers. Dave

Question: Survival Rate on Brain Cancer? What is the survival rate on brain cancer after 90% of the tumor is removed through surgery and going for radiation therapy? And the surgery was on the initial stage. Have primary brain tumor in cerebral astrocytomas. Stage II. No family history. Age is 30. No other medical problems or history. Healthy person.

Answer: Primary Malignant Brain Tumors A primary malignant brain tumor is one that originates in the brain itself. Although primary brain tumors often shed cancerous cells to other sites in the central nervous system (the brain or spine), they rarely spread to other parts of the body. Brain tumors are generally named and classified according to the following: The normal brain cells from which they originate, or The location in which the cancer develops The biologic diversity of these tumors, however, makes classification difficult, and some experts believe that more specific categories are needed. Categories of Primary Glioma Brain Tumors by Cell Types About half of all primary brain tumors are known collectively as gliomas. They are cancerous forms of glial cells, the building-block cells of the connective, or supportive, tissue in the central nervous system. There are several glial cells types from which gliomas form. Their names are: READ MORE http://adam.about.com/reports/Brain-tumors-primary.htm

Question: I am uninsured - I am an American. May have Brain Cancer (primary I think), 37 y/o father of two.? I think I may have brain Cancer (tumors) - no pitty please I need help not sorrow. How much for a CAT SCAN or MRI and radiation therapy? Also... can I travel to Cuba (most likely I will do this) - how much for the same treatment there... (This is a real question)..

Answer: Unfortunately, those tests can run thousands of dollars. I'm not sure about Cuba, but you'd want it to be legit if you're looking for serious treatment. Have you seen a doctor about this? They have to give you a script to even get the tests done. Maybe you should look into affordable self-insurance. By that I mean shopping around for insurance that you pay for yourself since you don't get it as a benefit. I hope everything works out for you.

Question: How do I help my 13 year old cousin with brain cancer? I have a 13 year old cousin who was just diagnosed with brain cancer. The tumor is located on her brain stem and the doctors who diagnosed her said it was inoperable. Her doctor's told her parents she had a life expectancy of only 2 years. My many family members and I have been doing research to find support and information that could benefit my young cousin. I read about proton radiation therapy, and due to my cousin's age I think it would be very beneficial. They live in the Chicago land area but travel is not an issue. Please, if anyone has an experience similar to this or knows of good doctors or hospitals please let me know. Your input will be greatly appreciated.

Answer: OMG! I feel so sorry for your cousin and her family nobody should have to go through this especially this young. I think you should be there for her as much as possible give her support you know cause she's going through a rough time I think that you should pray a lot for her also I know this may sound bogus but praying actually does help a lot. Miracles happen all the time. Tell her to have faith in God cause he works wonders for those who believe in him. I know poeple who doctors have told them they'll live 3-6 mnths and still living up till now tell her not to give up hope and be happy as much as possible I know that's hard to do. I will keep your cousin in my prayers.

Question: My sister has breast cancer that has spread to her brain, pituatary gland to be exact.? She has been on homone therapy and the tumor has become larger so now we are undergoing radiation. I have read she will lose her eye sight, is this certain? How long after the radiation will she have before it goes if so, and if the radiation doesnt work how long will she have left with us? Thanks for your caring time!

Answer: its possible- speak to the doctor of any concerns you may have.