A Consultant Neurosur
\ngeon, Dr Omotayo Ojo,\u00a0 said that persistent headaches might be a sign of a brain tumour.
\nOjo, who works\u00a0 \u00a0at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Idi-Araba, said this yesterday when he spoke to the press in Lagos.
\nHe defined a brain tumour as any abnormal cell growth that occurs within the brain or in the spinal canal.
\n\u201cThough the symptoms are there, it is not always easy for regular people to distinguish brain tumours from other illnesses. \u201cAny headache that basic painkillers cannot cure should be a warning for the person to see a doctor,\u201d he said.
\nOjo said that headaches, nausea and vomiting caused by a brain tumour could also be mistaken for signs of malaria.
\nHe pointed out that tumour headaches often occurred early in the morning and got better as the day progressed, while regular headaches occurred later on a stressful day.
\nOjo urged Nigerians to be aware of the subtle differences in the symptoms in order to ensure a quick diagnosis.
\nThe neurosurgeon that the exact causes of brain tumors were unknown, saying that certain factors increased a person\u2019s risk of getting brain cancer.
\n\u201cFor example, many years ago the treatment for ringworm was an x-ray, but we found that 30 years down the line, patients that got that x-ray had developed brain tumours. \u201cResearch also shows that brain tumours run in certain families; so those who are most affected need to be at alert,\u201d he said.
\nOjo said brain tumours could also be either benign or malignant, he said that bring brain tumours rarely spread and seldom grew back when removed, while malignant tumours were resistant to therapy and often grow back after surgery.
\nOjo said that the commonest form of brain tumour was the kind that started in one location in the body and spread to the brain.
\nAccording to Ojo, the prospects of recovery from a brain tumour depended on the type of tumour, the patient\u2019s age and his will to live.
\nHe said that a 20-year-old had a better chance of \u00a0recovering than an old man.
\nHe said that, if the tumour could be removed without affecting the surrounding brain tissue, then, surgery would be the first treatment, followed by radiotherapy to target anything left behind.
\nOjo urged anyone who had a seizure for the first time as an adult or experienced unexplained weakness or replaced their glasses within few months to see a doctor.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A Consultant Neurosur geon, Dr Omotayo Ojo,\u00a0 said that persistent headaches might be a sign of a brain tumour. Ojo, who works\u00a0 \u00a0at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Idi-Araba, said this yesterday when he spoke to the press in Lagos. He defined a brain tumour as any abnormal cell growth that occurs within the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n