Spinal Cord Tumors

Spinal Tumours

There is hardly any individual who hasn't suffered from back pain at some point or the other, and lower back pain is considered one of the prime factors for which people might want to miss a day of work. The source of the pain could range from herniated disk to muscle spasm to osteoarthritis. What’s worse, it could be a benign or a cancerous spine tumor. Even though spinal cord tumors are quite rare, when it occurs, it could be life-threatening. If caught early, it is possible to treat spine disorders effectively, and therefore, it pays to know a few important facts about spinal cord tumors.

Symptoms: Depend on location

• Local Pain – especially in extradural tumors
• Radicular Pain
• Backache
• Neck Pain
• Paresis and Numbness
• Weakness of hands and/or legs
• Difficulty/imbalance in walking
• The urinary difficulty or inability to hold urine
• Constipation
•  Scoliosis – increased curvature of spine/back

People who have previously suffered from cancer are at high risk: Individuals who had cancer particularly, breast, lung, kidney, prostate, and thyroid should be extra careful about their health in general. You should regularly monitor the symptoms of spine tumors since you are at a higher risk of developing them. It is found that in about 60 to 70 percent of the cases, cancer occurring in other parts of the body either metastasizes or spreads to the spinal cord.

Management:

1. Surgical Excision without compromising neurologic function
2. Radiotherapy
3. Chemotherapy

Always Remember:

• Don’t Ignore Patient’s Symptoms
• Use Imaging Judiciously
• The majority of tumors are benign
• Surgery should be performed as early as possible in symptomatic & large tumors

RAPID IDENTIFICATION AND INTERVENTION OF MALIGNANT SPINAL TUMORS, OFTEN CAUSING SPINAL CORD COMPRESSION, IS KEY TO MAINTAINING QUALITY OF LIFE IN PATIENTS