What is a glioblastoma?

A glioblastoma is the most common high grade primary brain tumour in adults. It rarely occurs in children.

It’s normal to feel shocked if you or someone you know has recently been diagnosed with a glioblastoma. Our Support and Information team can help you answer any questions you may have or provide a listening ear if you need one.

What is a glioblastoma?

Glioblastomas are grade 4 brain tumours and are sometimes called glioblastoma multiforme, GBM, GBM4 or a grade 4 astrocytoma. They’re:

• fast growing
• diffuse - meaning they have threadlike tendrils that extend into other parts of the brain
• likely to spread within the brain
• may come back, even if intensively treated
• sometimes called malignant or cancerous.

Glioblastomas are a type of glioma, which is a brain tumour that grows from a glial cell.

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What are the symptoms of a glioblastoma?

Different parts of the brain control different functions, so the symptoms you experience will depend partly on where the tumour is within your brain. It will also depend on the treatment you receive.

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How are glioblastomas treated?

Generally, if you’re well enough, neurosurgery will be performed to remove as much of the tumour as possible. 

Once your wound has healed, you may also receive chemotherapy, radiotherapy or both.

Before surgery, you may want to ask your healthcare team about:

• 5-ALA. A surgical aid that can help surgeons remove more of a tumour
• biobanking. A method of storing a sample of your tumour for future research.
• clinical trials. Experiments into new ways of treating brain tumours.

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What causes glioblastomas?

As with most brain tumours, it’s not known why glioblastomas start growing, although we do understand some of the risk factors involved.

It’s important to know that there is nothing you could have done, or avoided doing, that would have caused you or somebody you know to develop a brain tumour.

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How long can I live with a glioblastoma?

Nobody can be absolutely certain about what will happen to you following a diagnosis of a brain tumour.

Your healthcare team may give you a prognosis, which is an estimate based on your tumour type and current situation. However, they won't be able to predict other factors, such as how well you might respond to treatment.

Glioblastoma prognosis

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