Skip to main content
An official website of the United States government
Email

Managing Your Symptoms

Learn about common symptoms that people with brain and spine tumors experience, strategies to manage your symptoms, and when to report them to your doctor.

  • Person sitting while holding her back and head in pain

    Body Pain

    Pain is an unpleasant feeling in your body that causes physical discomfort.

  • Cancer patient talking with her doctor

    Cognitive Symptoms

    Cognitive symptoms include difficulty remembering, speaking, understanding, and concentrating.

  • Person walking with canes

    Difficulty Walking

    Difficulty walking may include problems standing or moving.

  • Man rubbing his tired eyes

    Fatigue

    Fatigue is an extreme sense of tiredness and lack of energy, which can be debilitating and interfere with daily activities.

  • Man lying in bed with a stomach ache

    Gastrointestinal Symptoms

    Gastrointestinal symptoms affect areas from your mouth to your rectum, such as your stomach or intestines.

  • Woman holding her head in pain while crying

    Headache

    A headache is pain or pressure in the head that does not go away—or that goes away and comes back.

  • Woman looking sad while gazing out the windo

    Mood Disturbance

    Mood disturbance can involve feelings of distress or sadness, or symptoms of depression and anxiety.

  • Person lying on the floor

    Seizure

    Seizures are sudden, uncontrolled body movements and changes in behavior that are caused by abnormal brain activity.

  • Woman lying in bed and receiving cancer treatment through an IV

    Sleep Disturbance

    Sleep disturbance can impact your physical and mental health, as well as your day-to-day life.

  • A man in a wheelchair getting assistance from a nurse

    Weakness

    Weakness is a loss of muscle strength that affects your movement or activity.

  • The My STORI app logo, which is an icon of a book with a brain in the middle

    My STORI Symptom Management App

    The My STORI mobile app can help you track and manage your symptoms and self-care activities.

We would like to acknowledge the following authors who contributed to writing and reviewing the content included on the symptoms section of the NCI-CONNECT website: Terri Armstrong, Ph.D.; Alvina Acquaye-Mallory; Orieta Celiku, Ph.D.; Youngjun Cho; Anna Choi; Alexa Christ; Julianie De La Cruz Minyety; Varna Jammula; Yeonju Kim; Amanda King, Ph.D.; Heather Leeper, M.D.; Molly Maher; Hope Miller; Kristin Odom; Kayla Roche; James Rogers; Michael Timmer; Raleigh McElvery; and Michelle Wright, Ph.D.

Email