Precursors to neuroblastoma recurrence

Written by Chen Yu Fei
Neurosurgery
Updated on September 28, 2024
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For neuroblastoma, if recurrence occurs, the patient may show symptoms like recurrent headaches, dizziness, nausea, and vomiting. Additionally, if the optic nerve is involved, there may be a decrease in vision and visual field defects. Even the possibility exists that the tumor could recur, increase in size, and compress surrounding important blood vessels and nerves, leading to an increase in intracranial pressure, which manifests as worsening of the original symptoms of headaches and dizziness. Once such symptoms occur, it generally suggests a high likelihood of neuroblastoma recurrence. If it causes symptoms such as hemiplegia and aphasia, it can generally be confirmed.

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Written by Chen Yu Fei
Neurosurgery
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Late-stage symptoms of neuroblastoma

For patients with neuroblastoma, they often experience significant symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, nausea, and vomiting. The intracranial pressure continuously rises, leading to noticeable optic atrophy, vision loss, and visual field defects. When the tumor volume further increases, it may also compress the surrounding tissues, causing apparent cranial nerve dysfunction. Moreover, in the late stages of the disease, the tumor can spread to other parts of the body via the bloodstream, forming metastases. Additionally, it is likely to disseminate through the cerebrospinal fluid.

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Written by Chen Yu Fei
Neurosurgery
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Can neuroblastoma be treated?

Neuroblastoma is the most common tumor in childhood, and it is also the most common in infants and toddlers. Typically, neuroblastoma is a type of neuroendocrine tumor, clinically found often in the adrenal glands or in nervous tissues such as the neck, chest, and abdomen. Currently, neuroblastoma can be effectively classified according to its level of risk into low-risk, intermediate-risk, or high-risk groups. For patients in the low-risk group, surgical treatment can achieve satisfactory results; for patients in the intermediate-risk or high-risk groups, treatment often involves a combination of methods, yet still may not achieve satisfactory results.

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Written by Chen Yu Fei
Neurosurgery
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How does neuroblastoma heal itself?

Neuroblastoma cannot completely heal by itself. Once neuroblastoma is detected, patients should be promptly taken to local hospitals for treatment, be hospitalized, and undergo skull CT or MRI scans. If necessary, enhanced MRI scans can be conducted to clarify the current location of the tumor and its relationship with surrounding tissues, and to determine the surgical plan. The tumor should be completely removed through surgery. After the surgery, a small amount of tumor tissue should be kept for pathological slides to assess the need for radiotherapy, chemotherapy, or other related treatments based on the results of the pathological examination. For some elderly and frail patients who cannot tolerate surgery, Gamma Knife treatment can also be considered.

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Written by Chen Yu Fei
Neurosurgery
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How to check for neuroblastoma?

For the examination of neuroblastoma, we generally recommend a neurological examination to help determine whether there are any clear positive signs, as well as to inquire about medical history and family history to judge if there are any cases of neuroblastoma among family members. Additionally, detailed laboratory tests, routine blood tests, routine urine tests, and biochemical tests, including tumor-related diagnostics, can help in making assessments. Of course, the most accurate and crucial examinations are CT or MRI scans of the head. If necessary, an enhanced MRI scan of the head can be conducted to further evaluate the location, nature, severity of the tumor, and its relationship with the surrounding neural and vascular tissues, which helps provide a basis for further surgical treatment.

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Written by Gao Yi Shen
Neurosurgery
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Is calcification of neuroblastoma good?

In clinical practice, although calcification is a relatively favorable phenomenon, the overall condition of neuroblastoma does not change significantly because of it. Therefore, it is still not a good sign. For neuroblastoma, whether calcification occurs or not, it remains a form of tumor. Only through early surgical treatment can the problem be fundamentally resolved, otherwise, there is a tendency for recurrence and metastasis to occur later on. Moreover, it is important to note that regardless of whether the tumor calcifies, its nature does not change. Only fundamental treatment can bring better hope, so calcification does not lead to very good outcomes.