Brain & Spine Tumors
Brain Tumor Center at Lahey
Leading-edge care for tumors in the brain and spine
State-of-the-Art Brain Tumor Treatment, Close to Home
Lahey’s Brain Tumor Center provides a comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach to the diagnosis and treatment of both benign and malignant brain tumors. Our team of specialists includes experts in neurosurgery, neuro-oncology, neuro-radiology, neuropathology and radiation oncology along with dedicated support from social workers, therapists and nutritionists to address the full range of each patient’s needs.
Each week, this collaborative team meets to review imaging and pathology in detail, ensuring every patient receives a personalized, carefully tailored treatment plan. We offer state-of-the-art treatments in our recently renovated radiation oncology department as well as in our infusion centers in both Peabody and Burlington. For added convenience, patients can also complete lab work and imaging at these locations – all in one place, close to home.
Conditions We Treat
- Benign brain tumors, including:
- Meningiomas
- Vestibular schwannomas
- Pituitary and skull base tumors
- Spinal tumors
- Tumor predisposition syndromes, such as NF-1 and NF-2
Once your condition is diagnosed, our team works together to develop a personalized treatment plan just for you.
More About Brain Tumors
Symptoms of a brain tumor vary depending on the tumor size, type and location. Symptoms may occur when a tumor damages a certain area of the brain or causes swelling.
The most common brain tumor symptoms include:
- Headaches
- Nausea or vomiting
- Seizures
- Changes in speech, vision or hearing
- Problems balancing or walking
- Changes in mood, personality or the ability to concentrate
- Problems with memory
- Numbness or tingling in the arms or legs
These symptoms don’t always indicate a brain tumor. They may be caused by other conditions. If you have any of these symptoms, you should be evaluated by a physician.
Members of Lahey’s Brain Tumor Clinic team, including a neurosurgeon, neuro-oncologist, neuropathologist and neuroradiologist, collaborate when evaluating a potential brain tumor diagnosis.
Your doctor will evaluate you with one or more of the following:
- Medical history: Details about any past and present health conditions to help the doctor assess your current health status.
- Neurologic exam: The physician assesses cognitive and language functions, strength, coordination, reflexes and perception.
- CT (computed tomography) scan: A type of imaging using X-ray beams to take pictures of the body that can be used to look for brain tumors or bleeding.
- MRI (magnetic resonance imaging): A non-invasive imaging technique that produces a detailed 3D image of the brain using a magnetic field. A contrast dye (gadolinium) is injected into the veins of the arm to help diagnose certain tumors.
We may use other studies, such as MR spectroscopy and MR perfusion, to help diagnose tumors. At Lahey, we have advanced equipment including both 3 Telsa and 1.5 Telsa MRI machines.
Biopsy & Tumor Resection
Getting tissue from the tumor is the only way to make a definitive brain tumor diagnosis. Your neurosurgeon may recommend a biopsy or resection. A stereotactic brain biopsy uses frameless neuro-navigation (3D coordination with your MRI images) to guide the surgeon. In some cases, we take the tissue sample by resecting (removing) a larger amount of tumor.
After surgery, a neuropathologist examines the cells under a microscope. They look for certain molecular and genetic alterations, then combine these details to make a diagnosis.
Treatment for brain tumors usually involves some mix of surgery and/or other therapies.
There are several reasons surgery may be performed for brain tumors:
- To biopsy the tumor tissue for accurate diagnosis
- To remove the entire tumor or at least as much of it as possible
- To help relieve pressure on the brain being caused by the tumor
Surgery
Neurosurgery is the preferred initial treatment for brain tumors that can be removed without causing too much damage to normal brain tissue.
Depending on the location of the tumor within the brain, we may perform a craniotomy to remove a large amount of the tumor. Tumors deep in the brain, which may be difficult to reach surgically, can be safely operated on using our advanced neuro-navigation system.
