Primary brain tumors, those that originate in the brain, are more frequent in children and older adults. One feature that sets brain tumors apart from those arising from other tissues in the body is their inability to exit the brain to form secondary, or metastatic, tumors in other organs. They do, however, have a tendency to invade the surrounding brain to establish new tumors within the cranium. The most serious type of intrinsic brain tumor is called glioblastoma multiforme, or GBM.
Brain tumors are the second most common cause of cancer deaths in males and females under the age of 20. After leukemia, intrinsic brain tumors are the second leading cause of cancer deaths in men between the ages of 20 and 29. They are the fifth most frequent cause of cancer deaths among females between the ages of 20 and 39.
The incidence of GBM is very low, between two and three new cases per 100,000. Because of their ability to migrate away from the parent tumor and start new growths, complete surgical excision is impossible. Try scraping off all of the butter from your next slice of toast.
GBM starts in glial cells within the brain, the so-called "helper" cells. While nerve cells stop dividing once they achieve terminal differentiation, glial cells retain the ability to divide throughout the life of the parent organism, i. E., you and me. In vivo studies in the 1960s and in vitro research from the early 2000s seems to indicate that most, if not all, intrinsic brain tumors originate in the developing fetus.
There are three different types of glial cells in the brain, each with different functions. These are astrocytes, microglia and oligodendrocytes. Astrocytes are the most common neural cell type found in brain tumors. These are called astrocytomas. GBM is the most malignant of the astrocytomas, with median survival time of less than five months without treatment.
Astrocytes are characterized by their starry morphology and the presence of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP). The normal function of astrocytes is to supply nutrients to nerve cells, support the vascular cells that comprise the blood brain barrier and repair damaged cells following trauma. New studies suggest that they communicate with neuronal cells by secreting glutamate, the brain's main excitatory neurotransmitter.
Oligodendrocytes have fewer spiny processes than astrocytes. Their main function is to produce the myelin sheath that surrounds nerve cell axons to insulate them and speed up nerve impulse transmission. A single oligodendrocyte can service as many as 50 different nerve cells. It is the myelin sheath that is attacked by the immune system in the autoimmune condition known as multiple sclerosis (MS).
Microglia are the macrophages of the central nervous system. These cells act quickly recognize and destroy foreign bodies, engulf them and present them to other cells of the immune system, called T-cells, before they get the chance to interfere with healthy brain tissue. Microglia exist in two different forms. Resting cells, which resemble tiny astrocytes, and activated microglia, which are more bloated in appearance.
Brain tumors are the second most common cause of cancer deaths in males and females under the age of 20. After leukemia, intrinsic brain tumors are the second leading cause of cancer deaths in men between the ages of 20 and 29. They are the fifth most frequent cause of cancer deaths among females between the ages of 20 and 39.
The incidence of GBM is very low, between two and three new cases per 100,000. Because of their ability to migrate away from the parent tumor and start new growths, complete surgical excision is impossible. Try scraping off all of the butter from your next slice of toast.
GBM starts in glial cells within the brain, the so-called "helper" cells. While nerve cells stop dividing once they achieve terminal differentiation, glial cells retain the ability to divide throughout the life of the parent organism, i. E., you and me. In vivo studies in the 1960s and in vitro research from the early 2000s seems to indicate that most, if not all, intrinsic brain tumors originate in the developing fetus.
There are three different types of glial cells in the brain, each with different functions. These are astrocytes, microglia and oligodendrocytes. Astrocytes are the most common neural cell type found in brain tumors. These are called astrocytomas. GBM is the most malignant of the astrocytomas, with median survival time of less than five months without treatment.
Astrocytes are characterized by their starry morphology and the presence of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP). The normal function of astrocytes is to supply nutrients to nerve cells, support the vascular cells that comprise the blood brain barrier and repair damaged cells following trauma. New studies suggest that they communicate with neuronal cells by secreting glutamate, the brain's main excitatory neurotransmitter.
Oligodendrocytes have fewer spiny processes than astrocytes. Their main function is to produce the myelin sheath that surrounds nerve cell axons to insulate them and speed up nerve impulse transmission. A single oligodendrocyte can service as many as 50 different nerve cells. It is the myelin sheath that is attacked by the immune system in the autoimmune condition known as multiple sclerosis (MS).
Microglia are the macrophages of the central nervous system. These cells act quickly recognize and destroy foreign bodies, engulf them and present them to other cells of the immune system, called T-cells, before they get the chance to interfere with healthy brain tissue. Microglia exist in two different forms. Resting cells, which resemble tiny astrocytes, and activated microglia, which are more bloated in appearance.
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