What are some of the misunderstandings in brain cancer diagnosis

Brain cancer is a central nervous system tumor that greatly damages the normal function of the patient's mental system. Nowadays, the incidence of brain cancer is increasing year by year, which is related to the misdiagnosis of brain tumors in clinical practice. Correcting some of these diagnostic errors can improve the diagnosis rate of brain cancer to a certain extent.

1. Cerebellar or brainstem tumors misdiagnosed as cervical spondylosis

Patients with tumors in the cerebellum or brain stem generally experience symptoms such as dizziness, stiff neck, numbness of limbs, and difficulty in flexion and extension, which can be easily misdiagnosed as cervical spondylosis. If patients blindly use inappropriate treatments such as medication, Chinese medicine cervical traction and massage, the disease may be delayed or even aggravated.

2. Brain tumors in the elderly are easily misdiagnosed as cerebrovascular disease

With the continuous improvement of living standards, my country has entered an aging society, and the incidence of brain tumors in the elderly has also increased significantly. The manifestations of brain tumors are similar to those of cerebrovascular diseases. Elderly people have slow reactions, confused thinking logic, urinating and defecating anywhere, memory loss, unclear speech, and even hemiplegia. They are often misdiagnosed as cerebral arteriosclerosis and cerebral thrombosis. They generally do not think of brain cancer and ignore related professional diagnosis and treatment. Because it is directly related to the patient's future quality of life, missing the opportunity for treatment and delaying the disease will cause lifelong regrets for the patient.

3. Pituitary tumors are easily misdiagnosed as eye diseases or endocrine diseases

Pituitary tumors are insidious and have no symptoms in the early stages. As the disease progresses, endocrine symptoms and changes in visual field may occur. Endocrine symptoms mainly include amenorrhea, lactation, infertility, etc., which are easy to ignore. Symptoms of high intracranial pressure will only appear when the tumor grows huge. Some patients with brain cancer only have decreased vision as an early symptom. Many patients think that it is a pure eye disease. A considerable number of patients are treated for fundus diseases such as optic neuritis and optic atrophy. Only when the treatment effect is unsatisfactory or the condition worsens further, will they undergo head CT or MRI examinations. This will delay the best time for treatment.