Pediatric brain tumors, or childhood brain tumors, are masses of abnormal cells growing in the brain. Brain tumors in children can be:

• Benign - Tumors that don't spread and can be cured with pediatric brain tumor resection
• Malignant - Tumors that have a chance of spreading and require treatment  - such as radiation or chemotherapy - in addition to surgery

Any childhood brain tumor can be life threatening if it becomes too big and presses against tissues that control body functions.

The Nation's Largest Pediatric Brain Tumor Program
Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center, in conjunction with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, is home to the nation's largest Pediatric Brain Tumor Program. Together, we are nationally known for our aggressive surgical approaches and groundbreaking treatments of brain tumors in children and adolescents.
 
Children with brain tumors receive care from a multidisciplinary group of physicians, scientists, nurses and support staff representing the many types of treatment and support crucial to the comprehensive care of children with brain tumors.

This team includes pediatric neurosurgeons at Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center and neuro-oncologists and pediatric radiation oncologists at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Through this multi-hospital collaboration, each child's care is supported by physicians representing radiology, neuropsychology, neuropathology and neuroendocrinology, plus specially trained nurses, rehabilitation specialists, pharmacists, nutritionists and audiologists.

The Pediatric Brain Tumor Program is a key component of Le Bonheur's Neuroscience Institute, a center of excellence dedicated to the evaluation and treatment of neurological disorders. Children from across the country visit Le Bonheur each year to be treated at the Institute.

Types of tumors
Types of brain tumors in children are:

• Childhood posterior fossa tumors. These are pediatric brain tumors that form near the base of the skull. About half of all childhood brain tumors are posterior fossa tumors.  They include:
  • Cerebellar astrocytomas
  • Ependymomas
  • Low grade gliomas
  • High grade gliomas
  • Medulloblastomas
• Supratentorial tumors. These are pediatric brain tumors that occur in the upper part of the brain. They include:
  • Cerebral astrocytomas
  • Choroid plexus tumors
  • Craniopharyngiomas
  • Diencephalics
  • Ependymomas
  • Germ cell tumors
  • High grade gliomas
  • Low grade gliomas
  • Meningiomas
  • Metastasis from extra neural malignancies
  • Mixed gliomas
  • Neuronal and mixed neuronal glial tumors
  • Oligodendrogliomas
  • Pineal parenchymal tumors
  • Primitive neuroectodermal tumors (including cerebral neuroblastoma, pineoblastoma, ependymoblastoma).

Treatment
Most childhood brain tumors are treated with pediatric brain tumor surgery. Radiation and chemotherapy can also be part of the treatment plan. Radiation therapy uses X-ray energy or other types of radiation to kill cancer cells or keep them from growing. Chemotherapy is a medication that kills cancer cells or keeps them from dividing.
 
Through our partnership with St. Jude Chiidren's Research Hospital, children with brain tumors have access to promising new treatments not yet available at other hospitals.

For more information
To schedule an appointment contact Neuroscience Institute, 866.705.8279
For more information about pediatric brain tumors, visit the following Web sites:

• American Brain Tumor Association
• National Cancer Institute
• The Brain Tumor Society
• National Brain Tumor Foundation
• St. Jude Children's Research Hospital