Brain tumours

The UK’s most senior brain and spine surgeons including Ms Mary Murphy, Clinical Lead and Mr Patrick Grover from the internationally regarded centre of excellence, The National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery describe the different types of brain tumour and the latest advances in their treatment.

We learn that brain tumours can be divided into primary brain tumours (those that arise from the brain itself and almost never spread from the central nervous system) and secondary (those that spread from a cancer somewhere else in the body). The latter are more common. There are between 5–15 primary brain tumours per every 100,000 people. This accounts for 5–10% of all cancers in all age groups, and probably makes up 30–40% of tumours in children.


Patients with brain tumours, alongside their family, do best if managed by a dedicated Multidisciplinary Team (MDT).