150 brain tumour cases in Hyderabad each month: Experts

Hyderabad: An estimated 150 brain tumour cases get reported in the city each month and the numbers keep rising, warn experts. While this is primarily due to increase in detection rates of brain tumour, 70%-80% cases turn out to be cancerous.

While the latest technologies are available to detect whether a tumour is benign (harmless) or malignant (cancerous) before going into surgery, a majority of the cases continue to be detected in the later stages, point out experts. Dr Aneel Kumar P, consultant neurosurgeon, MaxCure hospitals, said the ‘150 brain tumour cases each month’ is estimated by an informal group of specialists since there is no official registry of cases.

He said patients who do not have awareness about brain tumour and those from districts tend to wait before seeking treatment. “In case of persistent headaches, especially during morning hours, accompanied by vomiting, vision discrepancies (double vision or blurred vision) and speech discrepancies should seek immediate medical help,” he explained.

An increase in secondary brain tumours is another trend catching up in the city. Primary brain tumours originate in the brain itself and do not spread from the brain to other parts of the body except in rare cases.