Cancer screening exams can help find cancer glioma at its earliest stage when the chances for successful treatment, optimal outcomes and fewer side effects are greatest.
Although there are currently no screening tests available to detect gliomas early, expert cancer researchers at the OSUCCC – James are working to develop tests that can detect and diagnose gliomas early, leading to improved outcomes, faster responses and fewer side effects.
Although it is unusual, if you have a stong family history of brain tumors, there may be certain genetic tests that can help identify specific conditions associated with brain tumors. These tests are usually done when a patient is healthy and has no specific symptoms. Most gliomas occur in people with no known risk factors.
Diagnosing Gliomas
An accurate, complete diagnosis is essential for effectively treating gliomas. Because there is no routine brain cancer, the OSUCCC – James's world-renowned brain cancer specialists and subspecialists reach across multiple disciplines and modes of treatment to offer patients the latest technologies and the most advanced procedures to understand gliomas at the molecular and genetic levels – the levels that drive each patient's specific kind of brain cancer.
The OSUCCC – James is home to world-renowned diagnostic experts in gliomas. In fact, our team includes experts who specialize in brain cancer — and only brain cancer, 24/7 — studying, discovering and treating each kind, and developing and delivering leading-edge therapies.
These subspecialists and super subspecialists use the most accurate, advanced diagnostic testing and technology to analyze your cancer, enabling an entire team across multiple medical disciplines to determine the most effective, targeted treatment specifically for you.
If a glioma is suspected, your OSUCCC – James specialist will examine you and ask you about your medical history, including information about symptoms and any risk factors you may have.
These experts may also conduct the following tests to form a diagnosis:
Physical Exam
During a physical exam, an OSUCCC – James specialist examines the body carefully for any signs of disease. The patient is asked about medical history, lifestyle, any past disease, treatments and family history.
Neurological Exam
During a neurological exam, our experts use a series of specialized questions and tests to check the patient's brain, spinal cord and nerve function. An OSUCCC – James subspecialist will analyze the patient's mental status, capabilities, coordination, muscles and reflexes, and how well all five senses are working.
Visual Field Exam
Your specialist will examine your general eye health. And total field of vision by measuring how much you can see when looking straight ahead versus in all other directions. Any disruption of normal vision may be a sign that a tumor is pressing on parts of the brain involved in eyesight.
Tumor Marker Test
This is a test in which a sample of blood, urine or tissue is taken to measure the presence of certain substances that organs, tissues or tumor cells may produce when there are tumors present. There are presently no tumor marker tests in use for diagnosis of gliomas.
Genetic Testing
The OSUCCC – James experts may recommend genetic testing if you have an inherited syndrome associated with brain tumors. Using a sample of blood or tissue, this test will check for changes in the DNA that may be linked to a certain type of tumor.
Imaging Tests
Imaging tests produce pictures of the inside of the body, and they can help the experts determine the extent, or grade, of the disease.
Tests may include:
Computed Tomography Scan (CT Scan)
A type of X-ray test that produces detailed, cross-sectional images of your body. This procedure is also called computed tomography, computerized tomography or computerized axial tomography. A head CT scan can show evidence of a brain tumor such as a glioma.
MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) with Gadolinium
An MRI uses radio waves and strong magnets to help the OSUCCC – James subspecialists see inside the brain and spinal cord. A substance called gadolinium is injected into a vein before the text. The gadolinium will collect around areas with cancer cells, and then a computer translates the radio waves into a detailed picture to help determine if a tumor is present. An MRI is the preferred test to detect a brain tumor such as a glioma.
Single Photon Emission Tomography Scan (SPECT)
A SPECT scan produces a 3-D image with a special camera linked to a computer that rotates around the patient’s neck. The images highlight areas where a small amount of a previously injected radioactive substance collects. This procedure can help the OSUCCC – James experts distinguish between a tumor that began in the brain versus one that moved there from another site in the body.
Positron Emission Tomography (PET)
A PET scan uses a small amount of a radioactive agent mixed with glucose to identify cancer cells in the body. A special imaging camera displays images of these cells brighter than those of normal, healthy cells.
Angiogram
This X-ray procedure enables the OSUCCC – James experts to evaluate a patient’s arteries and blood vessels. The patient receives an injection of a small amount of contrast, or dye, which highlights the blood.
Surgery
The OSUCCC – James brain cancer experts may perform a biopsy or resection to diagnose a glioma.
Stereotactic or Open Biopsy
A piece of tissue or tumor is removed so that a specially trained OSUCCC – James pathologist can examine the cells under a microscope for any signs of cancer.
If a tumor is deep within the brain making it difficult to reach with surgery, the OSUCCC – James glioma experts may perform a stereotactic brain biopsy. In this procedure, the surgeon uses a 3-D scanner and computer to help find the tumor. Using a thin needle placed through an incision in the scalp and an opening in the bone, your OSUCCC – James brain cancer surgeon will remove tumor tissue to be analyzed for cancer cells by a specially trained brain cancer pathologist. If more tissue is needed, the experts may perform an open biopsy by making an opening in the skull to remove a small amount of tumor tissue.
Resection
If imaging tests show that a tumor can be surgically removed, the OSUCCC – James surgeon may remove a part of the skull and, with the help of ultrasound or MRI scan, remove all or part of the tumor.
The following tests may be done on the tissue:
Immunohistochemistry
A test in which an antibody (a protein) is used to check for certain antigens in the tissue sample. Cancer cells that produce these antigens show a distinct staining under a microscope and help the specifically trained OSUCCC – James pathologists to determine what type of cancer is present.
Light & Electron Microscopy
A laboratory test in which the experts use a high-powered microscope to examine cells for certain changes that may indicate cancer.
Cytogenetic Analysis
This test analyzed the cells and identifies abnormal chromosomes (where genes are) that contribute to gliomas. Identifying these abnormalities can help the OUSCCC – James glioma specialists decide the very best kind of personalized treatment for the patient.
Genetic analysis
In this test, genetic material is obtained from the tumor tissue and examined for changes in genes that may help predict how a tumor may behave.
Staging and Grading Gliomas
If you are diagnosed with a glioma, grading the tumor is just one of the many ways your OSUCCC – James brain cancer experts can determine the amount and location of your cancer, and it can help them choose the most effective, personalized treatment options for your particular cancer.
Tumors that begin in the brain may spread to other parts of the brain and spinal cord, but they rarely spread to other parts of the body.
For brain tumors, there is no standard staging system. Instead, brain tumors are grouped by grade. The tumor grade refers to how the cells look under a microscope:
- Grade I: The tissue is benign (non-cancerous). The cells look almost like normal brain cells, and they grow slowly.
- Grade II: The tissue is malignant (cancerous). The cells look less like normal cells than do the cells in a Grade I tumor.
- Grade III: The malignant tissue has cells that look very different from normal cells. The abnormal cells are actively growing (anaplastic).
- Grade IV: The malignant tissue has cells that look most abnormal and tend to grow quickly.
Cells from low-grade tumors (Grades I and II) look more normal and generally grow more slowly than cells from high-grade tumors (Grades III and IV).
Over time, a low-grade tumor may become a high-grade tumor. The change to a high-grade tumor, however, happens more often among adults than children.
If you’ve been diagnosed with a glioma, would like a second opinion or would like to speak with a brain cancer specialist, please call The James Line at 800-293-5066 or 614-293-5066 to make an appointment.