Types of Brain Tumors in Children

The clinical team has experience in addressing the care needs of children with virtually any type of brain tumor, including the following:

Astrocytomas are tumors that grow from the glial cells and make up almost 50% of childhood brain tumors, frequently occurring in children between 5-9 years of age.

An Astrocytoma is a form of brain tumor that develops in the cells that form the supportive tissue of the brain.

An atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor, is a fairly rare aggressive tumor usually diagnosed in young children that forms in the tissues of the Central Nervous System.

In children, tumors of the choroid plexus are rare, overwhelmingly benign papillomas Grade 1 that generally occur in young infants.

A craniopharyngioma is a non-cancerous brain tumor that develops from cells present during early brain development, and in childhood frequently presents between the ages of 5-14 years.

Tumors that start in the glial tissue at the base of the brain in the brainstem area called the Pons, just above the back of the neck, are called diffuse intrinsic pontine gliomas.

Dysembryoplastic neuroepithelial tumors are rare, slow growing, non-spreading growths, found in children and teens, that develop from different types of abnormal central nervous system brain cells.

Embryonic cells are a type of brain cell that remains in the brain after birth and while embryonic tumors can occur at any age they most often happen in babies and young children.

Ependymal cells form the lining of the ventricles in the brain and the central canal of the spinal cord. Tumors that develop from these cells, are called ependymomas.

Please see Dysembryoplastic Neuroepithelial Tumor for further information.

A germinoma is a rare form of cancer that is most often found in the brain of children between the ages of 10 and 19 years.

Glioblastoma multiforme are high-grade 1V, aggressively growing, cancerous glial tumors which infiltrate into healthy adjacent brain tissue, frequently occurring in both boys and girls aged 5-10 years.

Glioma is a form of cancer that develops from glial cells of the brain - those cells which support and nourish the neurons.

A rare form of malignant tumor that grows and infiltrates astrocyte cells and which spreads over the top and throughout the brain.

Children with hereditary paraganglioma-pheochromocytoma syndrome are often under frequent monitoring due to their high risk of developing cancer. The presence of the tumors, often in large numbers, is the primary sign of this disease.

Li-Fraumeni syndrome is a genetic disorder that increases the risk of getting certain forms of cancer in children and adults.

Glioma is a form of cancer that develops in the glial cells of the brain. Low-grade glioma refers to a grade 1 or grade 2 glioma that is highly treatable.

Gliomas are tumors formed from cells (glial cells) that hold the nerve cells in the brain in place, protect them and provide them with food and oxygen. Gliomas are divided into four grades of severity (1-1V) depending on the tumor cells’ appearance. The higher the grade the more severe the glioma.

Of cancerous brain tumors that can affect children, medulloblastoma is the most common. They represent about 20 percent if childhood brain tumors, particularly in children between the ages of 3 and 8 years, with boys affected more than girls.

A meningioma is a relatively uncommon childhood tumor that grows from the middle of the three membranes layers that cover the brain and spinal cord.

Oligodendroglioma is a type of brain tumor that affects the glial tissue of the brain.

Glioma is a specific type of slow growing tumor that starts in one of the cells of the brain or spinal cord. When this tumor grows on or around the visual system it is known as an optic pathway glioma.

An astrocytoma is a type of brain tumor glioma, and pilocytic astrocytomas are a family of slow-growing, mostly noncancerous tumors from glial cells.

Pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma is a rare brain tumor that grows in the upper parts of the brain from brain cells called astrocytes. Very rarely it may develop into cancer.

Primitive neuroectodermal tumors are a group of cancers that start in nerve cells formed in the fetus during early development that haven't developed the way they should have.

Neuroblastoma is the most common solid cancerous tumor found outside the brain in children. In some cases, the neuroblastoma can return after treatment.

A tumor that grows in the tissues around, or spreads from a different site to the spinal cord region, it is known as a spinal cord tumor.

A tectal glioma is a slow growing, generally benign, brain tumor in children 3-16 years of age.

An astrocytoma, a common type of glioma, is a form of brain cancer that starts in brain cells, known as astrocytes, that support and nourish other brain cells.