Is glioma contagious?

Glioma is a unique disease that occurs in the brain. It can cause headaches, which may mainly occur on the affected side. The headaches are intermittent at the beginning and often occur in the early morning. The worsening of headaches can also lead to the uncontrollable disease, accompanied by vomiting, decreased vision, and the occurrence of epilepsy. Let us now understand whether glioma is contagious.

Gliomas are tumors that occur in the neuroectoderm, so they are also called neuroectodermal tumors or neuroepithelial tumors. Tumors originate from neural interstitial cells, namely glial cells, ependyma, choroid plexus epithelium and neural parenchymal cells, namely neurons. Most tumors originate from different types of glial cells, but based on their histological origins and similar biological characteristics, various tumors that occur in the neuroectoderm are generally called gliomas. It is a disease that occurs in individuals and has no special transmission route.

As the tumor gradually grows, it forms an intracranial space-occupying lesion, which is often accompanied by surrounding brain edema. When the compensation limit is exceeded, the intracranial pressure increases. When the tumor blocks the circulation of cerebrospinal fluid and compresses the veins, resulting in venous return obstruction, the intracranial pressure increases further. If bleeding, necrosis and cyst formation occur in the tumor, the process can be accelerated. When the intracranial pressure increases to a critical point, the intracranial volume continues to increase slightly, and the intracranial pressure will increase rapidly. If the intracranial pressure is monitored, when the pressure reaches 6.67-13.3 kPa of mercury, a plateau wave will appear. The plateau wave appears repeatedly and lasts for a long time, which is a clinical sign. When the intracranial pressure is equal to the arterial pressure, the cerebral blood vessels are paralyzed, the cerebral blood flow stops, the blood pressure drops, and finally the breathing stops, the blood pressure drops, the heart stops beating and death occurs.

Infratentorial posterior fossa tumors can cause foramen magnum herniation, with cerebellar tonsils shifting downward and herniating out of the foramen magnum. In severe cases, the ventral side of the medulla oblongata compresses the anterior edge of the foramen magnum. Supratentorial tumors can also be associated with foramen magnum herniation. This causes medullary ischemia, coma, increased blood pressure, slow but strong pulse, and deep and unplanned breathing. Subsequently, breathing stops, blood pressure drops, and the pulse becomes rapid and weak, eventually leading to death.