Seizures, Headaches, Dizziness, and More
Dizzinesscan sometimes be an early sign of atumor.
It explains why you should need to see a healthcare provider for symptoms.
Common Brain Tumor Symptoms
Many brain tumor symptoms overlap with the symptoms of other conditions.
Illustration by Verywell
It’s important to understand a specific symptom within a pattern of signs and your overall health.
A pineal gland tumor, for example, may limit the ability to look up.
Hormonal changes, like leaking breast milk, can arise from a pituitary tumor.
Get our printable guide for your next healthcare provider’s appointment to help you ask the right questions.
Brain tumor headaches tend to be dull and persistent, with throbbing headaches occurring less often.
Additional symptoms, like vomiting, are often present.
So doesneck pain, which is more often associated with spinal tumors.
Symptoms of a brain tumor have also been known to mimicdepression.
Vision and Hearing Problems
Some brain tumors can cause visual or auditory (hearing) disturbances.
Hearing changes can include one-sided hearing loss or ringing in the ears.
This symptom is considered an emergency.
An abnormal gait can develop, affecting the way you walk, and coordinated movements may become difficult.
In other cases, people report dizziness and other side effects from treatments for brain tumors.
The symptoms of benign and malignant tumors are very similar.
What Causes Brain Tumor Symptoms?
Brain tumor symptoms are associated with the part of the brain where a tumor is growing.
A tumor in the area of the brain that controls balance may result in lack of coordination.
Tumors in this area can cause an intellectual decline as well as a change in personality.
Pressure on the olfactory nerve may result in a loss of the sense of smell (anosmia).
The ability to speak may also be impaired (expressiveaphasia).
Frontal lobe and temporal lobe tumors may cause emotional changes, such as an increase in aggressiveness.
People with a tumor in this region may ignore one side of their body or experience spontaneous pain.
Occipital Lobe Tumors
The occipital lobes at the back of the brain are involved in vision.
Cerebellar Tumors
The cerebellum at the lower back of the brain is responsible for balance and coordination.
Tumors in this region may cause a lack of coordination similar to that associated with being drunk.
These tumors also can cause difficulty with fine motor skills, such as writing or brushing teeth.
These tumors can also compress the optic nerves, leading to vision changes.
Keep in mind that many symptoms, like headache or dizziness, occur with far less serious health issues.
In most cases, you’re able to call your healthcare provider to talk about your symptoms.
It’s often a pattern of symptoms that makes a brain tumor the more likely diagnosis.
The symptoms also change depending on where a tumor is located.
Contact your healthcare provider if you have symptoms you think might be due to a brain tumor.
It’s important to have an accurate diagnosis and discuss your treatment options.
Get our printable guide for your next healthcare provider’s appointment to help you ask the right questions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Because there are so many types of brain tumorsmore than 150the answer will vary.
Others, such as glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), are aggressive and grow quickly.
It’s possible to have an asymptomatic brain tumor.
Some tumors grow so slowly that people live with them for years without knowing.
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