Brain Cancer Like Kennedy's Is Difficult to Treat (1/2)

Last week doctors in Massachusetts announced that Senator Ted Kennedy has brain cancer. The news came after he suffered a seizure. Doctors found a glioma, a growth in the supportivetissue of the brain. The glialtissue is where the largest percentage of brain tumors begin.

More than forty percent of growths in the brain are gliomas. But they make up almost eighty percent of cancerous growths, like the malignant" class="hjdict" word="malignant" target=_blank>malignant glioma that Senator Kennedy has. Seizures and headaches are common first signs of a glioma.

Cancerous glial tumors generally spread in the brain the way roots spread from a plant. That makes removing the tumor more difficult. A clear border between the cancer and healthy tissue can be difficult to find.

The location of the glioma must also be considered when deciding treatment. Senator Kennedy's tumor is in the left parietallobe of the brain. This area is involved in some sensory understanding and spatial recognition, as well as language, reading and vision. Removal of a glioma from this area can result in speech problems and other disabilities.

参考译文：

上周，马萨诸塞州的医生宣布参议员特德·肯尼迪患有脑癌。该消息在他发病后传出。医生发现他患有胶质细胞瘤，这种肿瘤生长在脑部支持组织中。胶质组织是绝大多数脑部肿瘤的起源。

超过40%的脑部增生是胶质细胞瘤。但是，约80%的癌样生长是由它们引起的，正如发生在参议员肯尼迪所患的恶性胶质细胞瘤。疾病发作和头疼是胶质细胞瘤最常见的首发症状。

恶性胶质瘤通常会像从植物伸展出来的根须一样在脑内扩散。这使切除肿瘤变的非常困难。难以找到肿瘤组织与健康组织之间清晰的界限。

在决定治疗措施时，还应该考虑胶质细胞瘤的位置。参议员肯尼迪的肿瘤位于脑部左顶叶。该部分有一些理解和空间识别的感受器，还与语言、阅读和视觉有关。移除该区的胶质细胞瘤可能引起言语问题和其他残疾。

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