A certain type of scanning can detect when a patient is failing to respond to brain tumour treatment before symptoms appear, according to researchers at Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Centre.
During the study, researchers analysed patients with recurring malignant brain tumours who were receiving chemotherapy.
Brain Tumor
Brain tumors are the abnormal growth of brain cells that may be benign or metastatic. Brain tumors account for about 2.4% of all the tumor diagnosesandare most challenging due to their critically delicate location.
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They received scans through an imaging device called MR spectroscopy to identify metabolic changes.
The scanning technique suggested that the use of metabolic imaging identifies chemical changes earlier than structural imaging such as a conventional MRI and CT scans.
![Brilliant Human Brain - Animation]( "Brilliant Human Brain - Animation")
The most amazing and complex organ in the entire universe, the human brain continues to remain an enigma.
This approach allowed researchers to determine if the tumours were responding to treatment early by assessing metabolic changes in a brain tumour, which are easy to detect and appear before structural changes or symptoms.
"The study has shown for the first time that metabolic response to brain tumour treatment can be detected earlier and faster by metabolic imaging instead of through structural imaging or assessment of the neurological status of a patient," said Mark C. Preul, M.D., Newsome Chair of Neurosurgery Research at St. Joseph's.
The researchers said that imaging can be done often and poses no radiation hazard. It is also non-invasive.
"Frequent use of this type of imaging may be a useful tool to follow a patient's response to chemotherapy for malignant brain tumours," said Dr. Preul.
"It gives us the ability to identify treatment failure early and more time to alter a patient's treatment plan before the disease progresses," he added.
Source: ANI
RAS/L
Brilliant Human Brain - Animation
The most amazing and complex organ in the entire universe, the human brain continues to remain an enigma.
Advertisement
This approach allowed researchers to determine if the tumours were responding to treatment early by assessing metabolic changes in a brain tumour, which are easy to detect and appear before structural changes or symptoms.
"The study has shown for the first time that metabolic response to brain tumour treatment can be detected earlier and faster by metabolic imaging instead of through structural imaging or assessment of the neurological status of a patient," said Mark C. Preul, M.D., Newsome Chair of Neurosurgery Research at St. Joseph's.
The researchers said that imaging can be done often and poses no radiation hazard. It is also non-invasive.
"Frequent use of this type of imaging may be a useful tool to follow a patient's response to chemotherapy for malignant brain tumours," said Dr. Preul.
"It gives us the ability to identify treatment failure early and more time to alter a patient's treatment plan before the disease progresses," he added.
Source: ANI
RAS/L
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