• A Neurological Exam: A physician will assess the person’s symptoms by asking about the patient’s personal and family health history. This information combined with the neurological exam provides clues about whether a person might have a brain tumor.
• Brain scans : To show abnormalities like a brain tumor, a contrast dye is often used. The dye is injected into a vein in the arm. A brain tumor generally soaks up more dye than normal brain tissue and shows up clearly on the scan.
• CT Scans: CT scans are a type of X-ray that creates a three-dimensional picture of the head by scanning the head from multiple different angles. A computer combines these images into a detailed, cross-sectional view that shows abnormalities in the brain, or tumors.
• MRI Scans: The Best type of imaging to diagnose most types of brain tumors is MRI. These scans use magnetic fields and radio waves, rather than X-rays, and computers to create detailed pictures of the brain.
• PET Scans: A PET scan detects changes in cells as they grow. A small amount of radioactive glucose is
injected. Depending on the grade on the tumor, tumor cells absorb a characteristic amount of the radioactive glucose in comparison to normal parts of the brain.
• Biopsy : A Biopsy is a surgical procedure to remove a small sample of the tumor for examination under a microscope. Most of the time, the biopsy is done during surgery to remove the brain tumor (called an open biopsy).