What is a brain or spinal cord tumour?
A brain tumour starts in the cells of the brain. A spinal cord tumour starts in the cells of the spinal cord.
Together, the brain and spinal cord form the central nervous system (CNS). The brain is the control centre of your body. It is a soft mass of nerve tissue protected by a bony covering called the skull. The spinal cord runs through the spine. It contains nerves that send information between the brain and the rest of the body.
Cells in the brain or spinal cord sometimes change and no longer grow or behave normally and form tumours. Brain and spinal cord tumours can be benign (non-cancerous) or malignant (cancerous). Non-cancerous tumours in the CNS are more common than cancerous tumours.
Cancerous tumours that start in the brain and spinal cord are different from other types of cancer because they rarely spread to other parts of the body outside the CNS. But both cancerous and non-cancerous brain and spinal cord tumours can cause severe or life-threatening symptoms because they put pressure on the surrounding brain and spinal cord tissues.
Brain and spinal cord tumours are classified based on:
- if the tumour is more common in adults or in children
- the type of cell in the brain or spinal cord where the tumour starts
- any genetic changes found in the cancer cells
-
the
grade - the area where the tumour is found
This information is about brain and spinal cord tumours in adults. Find out more about childhood brain and spinal cord tumours.
The brain and spinal cord
Types of brain and spinal cord tumours
Brain and spinal cord cysts
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