Pediatric Brain Tumors

Families of children with brain and spinal cord tumors face great challenges, but finding comprehensive, compassionate care shouldn't be one of them. Our brain and spinal cord tumor program provides families with many choices of diagnostic, treatment, rehabilitation and support services so that each child has the best chance for a cure, as well as the best possible quality of life.

A Multidisciplinary Team

Pediatric experts from a wide range of specialties can be part of your child's team, including oncology, neurosurgery, endocrinology, ophthalmology, genetics, therapy and more. Expert physicians meet weekly to discuss cases, share viewpoints and weigh the pros and cons of different brain tumor management plans. Every brain tumor case is discussed in this Tumor Board meeting before treatment is determined.

Meet our Pediatric Brain Tumor Experts

Types of Brain Tumors

There are many different types of pediatric brain and spinal cord tumors. They can be cancerous (malignant) or noncancerous (benign). Although benign brain tumors are not cancerous, they may cause serious issues and can be difficult to treat. Malignant brain tumors have additional challenges, as the cancerous cells may move into adjacent parts of the brain and can spread to other parts of the central nervous system.

The most common types of pediatric brain and spinal cord tumors are listed below. However, our specialists have expertise in diagnosing and treating a wide range of tumors, including those not listed here.

Atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumors (ATRT)
Central nervous system (CNS) embryonal tumors
Choroid plexus tumors
Craniopharyngioma
Diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG)/Diffuse midline glioma (DMG)
Ependymoma
Germ cell tumors
High-grade glioma
Low-grade glioma
Medulloblastoma
Meningioma
Pineal and pituitary tumors
Schwannoma
Tumors associated with neurofibromatosis
Vascular anomalies

“We provide excellent, comprehensive care, working as a multidisciplinary team with our patients and their families, while being open to pushing the needle and not settling on the norm.”

Shawn Damodharan, DO

Director, Pediatric Neuro-Oncology

Meet our pediatric brain tumor team

Why Choose Comer Children's for Pediatric Brain Tumors?

We know that brain and spinal cord tumors in children often need to be treated differently than those in adults, and our team understands the unique challenges that children face and who have access to the most advanced therapies.

Advancing Research

There have been tremendous advances in brain tumor care in recent years. Our team is committed to furthering research in this area. We work to improve current treatments and identify options for brain and spinal cord tumors that do not respond to conventional therapies.

The University of Chicago Medicine Comer Children's collaborates with research groups around the country to give patients access to the most promising treatments available in clinical trials. Some of these research groups include the National Cancer Institute, the Children's Oncology Group and the Neurofibromatosis Research Program.

Find a Clinical Trial

Long-Term Care

Children coping with challenging diagnoses often have ongoing medical, emotional, social and developmental needs. Our doctors, nurses, social workers and child life specialists recognize these issues and can provide your family with resources and tools to help you cope and stay informed.

Children who have survived cancer may face other health issues as they grow older. To meet these challenges, Comer Children’s created the Childhood Cancer Survivors Center. This unique Center helps young patients address some of the social and emotional concerns they may have as cancer survivors.

In addition, Comer Children's is home to the Pediatric Familial Cancer Clinic. The goal of this program is to help children and their families who may have an increased risk of cancer. Our experts perform risk assessments, genetic counseling and provide coordinated care to reduce any risk.

Second Opinions

Resources & Support

Request an Appointment

We are currently experiencing a high volume of inquiries, leading to delayed response times. For faster assistance, please call 773-702-6169 to schedule your appointment.

If you have symptoms of an urgent nature, please call your doctor or go to the emergency room immediately.

For Referring Physicians

To refer a pediatric patient for cancer care, please call UCM Physician Connect at 1-800-824-2282.

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