After treatment, ongoing follow-up care is needed to monitor the condition and determine whether the disease is recurring or progressing. The care team will determine the best schedule for your child. Some astrocytomas in childhood have minimal symptoms and do not require surgery. However, the symptoms that your child may experience should be reported to your doctor right away.
The type of treatment your child receives will depend on his or her age and the location of the tumor. In most cases, the recurrence of astrocytomas in childhood can be avoided through early detection and treatment. Surgical treatments, radiation, and chemotherapy are options for recurrence. Depending on the type of astrocytoma, recurrences can be avoided or controlled.
Detection and treatment of an astrocytoma is usually straightforward and easy. While the exact diagnosis of an astrocytoma can be controversial, it is important to understand the signs and symptoms of astrocytomas in childhood. Often, these tumors are low-grade and don’t require immediate treatment. If you suspect that your child has an astrocytoma, a biopsy may be needed to confirm the diagnosis.
While there is no definitive cure for astrocytomas, there is a range of treatments for childhood astrocytomas. Surgical procedures are the most common treatment for astrocytomas. These include a procedure known as brain surgery to remove the tumor and to remove the cancer cells. This procedure is recommended for children who have had the first symptoms of the disease. If the tumor has spread to other parts of the brain, radiotherapy may be necessary.
If your child is diagnosed with an astrocytoma, he or she may need to undergo chemotherapy or undergo radiation treatment. In most cases, astrocytomas do not cause any symptoms, but they may be related to other conditions. Symptomatic astrocytomas in childhood should be investigated and treated as soon as possible. There is no single type of chemotherapy or radiation for astrocytoma in children.
While treatment for astrocytomas in childhood is highly variable, most patients undergo a surgery in order to remove the tumor. During the course of treatment, the child will likely experience mild symptoms that do not require radiation. After the tumor is removed, the child will have no further symptoms, and the doctors may recommend a drug therapy. In many cases, the patient will undergo chemotherapy, but the treatment may be less effective for a small astrocytoma in childhood.
Depending on the location and type of astrocytoma in childhood, a tumor may cause symptoms that are unrelated to the tumor. Surgical resection is the primary treatment for childhood astrocytomas, but it is not always possible to completely remove all of the tumor in children. If there is no visible tumor in the child, biopsies will be needed. A biopsy will be necessary to confirm the diagnosis of astrocytoma in children.
