Sheryl Crowd who iagnosed with a benign brain tumor, says she's
not worried. Here are some facts about the tumor -- known as a
meningioma with which Crow was diagnosed.First, some definitions: The "oma" suffix refers to a swelling, tumor or cancer. It's Greek.
The
"meninge" part of the word speaks to where these tumors originate: from
the three membranes that cover the brain and spinal cord, known as
meninges.The middle membrane,
called the arachnoid, is the source of meningiomas.
They can crop
up in the spinal cord or in the brain in different places: on the
outside of the brain in a spot between
the two sides of the brain or
somewhere in the ventricles -- the fluid-filled spaces in the brain.And there are still more, sometimes with
specific symptoms .
Meningiomas are the most common type of tumor
originating in brain tissue. They are most usually benign,
meaning they're noncancerous and slow-growing.
"However, the word
'benign' can be misleading in this case, as when benign tumors grow and
constrict and affect the brain, they can cause disability and even be
life threatening," a Brigham and Women's Hospital website notes.