What is a benign brain tumor?
Disease description:
Last month, my mother-in-law was diagnosed with a benign brain tumor. Could you please explain what a benign brain tumor is?
Doctor's answer (1)
Dr. Yang Ziqi
Benign brain tumors refer to tumors that grow in certain areas of the skull (often outside the brain neural tissue), with well-differentiated tissue and relatively slow growth. Most of these tumors can be cured completely. Common types include meningiomas, pituitary adenomas, embryonal residual tumors, and vascular tumors. Characteristics of benign brain tumors include slow growth, relatively intact capsule, lack of infiltration into surrounding tissues, and good differentiation. When a tumor is located in a critical area or is large in size, it may produce a space-occupying effect, compressing and displacing brain tissue, leading to increased intracranial pressure and causing symptoms such as headache, nausea, vomiting, and papilledema, which can even be life-threatening. Although benign brain tumors grow slowly and have a relatively good prognosis, timely diagnosis and treatment are still necessary.
