How to: Shrink a cancerous brain tumor

I thought I'd explain the deal with the killing/shrinking of a cancerous brain tumor.Of course killing the tumor would be great, but in order to do that you would need to cut out all visible tumor and then an extra inch or two in every direction just to be on the safe side. In some organs this may be do-able, but not in the brain.I've had two surgeries to cut out as much visible tumor as was safe for my overall functioning, but cancerous cells still exist ... we know they are there, and you can see them in an MRI.Radiation is used to kill cells but it also kills good brain cells, and this will impair cognitive functioning for the rest of your life.The role of chemotherapy is to prevent the growth of additional cancer cells. If chemo is successful, you stay on it for as long as you can. If at some point the chemo stops working, and tumor continues to grow, you get radiation ... and I am sure you can understand why I am not excited to do that.See also: Cancer treatment for dummies (This is the first time I've referenced my own blog!)