Our Approach

Patients who come to the Siteman Cancer Center for treatment of brain tumors or spinal tumors are seen by a team of Washington University Physicians – medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, neurosurgeons, radiologists, supportive care specialists and a health psychologist.

Experienced nurses then spend time with you, answering your questions and putting you in touch with resources that may help during this stressful time. These nurses offer patient information on brain tumors and spinal cord tumors, surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy and other related issues. As a unique feature of your care, we also offer the services of a palliative care specialist who can help you fit treatment into your own special circumstances, if needed.

Having your brain or central nervous system cancer treated at Siteman gives you access to new therapies that are as good as – or potentially better than – current standard therapies available elsewhere. Our brain tumor and spinal tumor treatment team provides state-of-the-art diagnostic and treatment strategies for patients with newly diagnosed or recurrent tumors. Among these strategies are the latest therapies available through clinical trials. Many of our specialists also do laboratory research that can be rapidly translated into clinical care.

Weekly, members of our team meet to discuss patient cases. Through this multidisciplinary approach, physicians in different clinical areas discuss the best way to treat individual cases. Expertise of the neuro-oncology group covers neurosurgery, neurology, neuro-oncology, neuroradiology, nuclear medicine, radiation oncology, ophthalmology and otolaryngology.

Neuro-oncology is divided into location of tumors (brain, spine, skull base or pituitary), grade of tumor (I – IV) and whether the tumor is benign (non-cancerous) or malignant. Some tumors, such as meningiomas, can occur anywhere in the central nervous system where meninges, the covering of the brain and spinal cord, are present. However, specific treatment for CNS tumors is often dictated by the location of the tumor and its proximity to delicate structures.

Even though a tumor may not be cancerous, its location and size or the effect it has on hormone production can cause serious problems for you. Three of the top four types of tumors, meningioma, pituitary, and cranial nerve tumors, are usually benign. That’s why it is best to have your situation evaluated by a multidisciplinary team of specialists who have had vast experience with all these situations and know when a tumor has to be treated. And when vigilance is the best course of treatment, our Washington University specialists are able to make that determination with confidence.

The specific complexities presented by brain tumors, spine tumors, skull base tumors or pituitary tumors require delicate precision and unparalleled excellence. Our neuro-oncology team is singularly dedicated to that pursuit, working tirelessly to ensure our patients have the most advanced brain and spinal cord tumor treatment options.

Our program’s research efforts and leadership are directly impacting the advancement of brain and spinal cord tumor treatment, propelling it forward every day. We lead clinical trials that push innovation thresholds. We develop emerging therapies that create opportunities. We collaborate to dramatically improve patients’ quality of life.