Treatment for children’s brain tumours
Recovering from brain surgery can take some time, both in hospital and at home. Neurosurgery is a big operation. Many children stay in an intensive or high dependency unit for the first few days. After that they are usually looked after on the children’s ward.
It’s difficult to say how long your child will spend on the ward. Some children are only in for several days but some stay for longer. This is usually children who need intensive after surgery.
Children’s wards can be busy and noisy places. But they tend to be more relaxed and child friendly places than adult wards and intensive care units. The nurses won’t need to do quite so many checks once they are on the children’s ward. And you should be able to be more involved in their care.
In most children’s wards one parent or carer can stay overnight with their child. Your child’s nursing team, or clinical nurse specialist, will let you know what to expect.
Your child’s nurse will arrange for their stitches or surgical clips to get taken out if they haven’t been removed before going home. This usually happens 7 to 10 days after surgery. This might mean your child will either:
be seen by a community children’s nurse at home
go back to the day unit or ward at the hospital they had their surgery in
go to the local children’s hospital
You’ll also notice that their hair gradually grows back around the wound. This usually starts within a couple of weeks. But this will depend on whether your child is having chemotherapy or not.
Every child recovers differently from this type of surgery. It also depends on whether they will need another treatment after surgery, and when this will start.
Schools are very understanding and will do everything in their power to help your child settle back in. It may mean they start by going in for a few hours. And then as they recover, they can gradually build up how long they are in for.
It’s best to talk to your child’s clinical nurse specialist (CNS) about plans for school and education while having cancer treatment. The CNS can also communicate with or even visit the school to help support the staff in caring for your child.
We have more information about school for children with cancer here
It’s common for children to have more treatment after brain surgery. This might be chemotherapy, radiotherapy or both. Your child’s team will let you know what to expect.
Last reviewed: 19 Dec 2022
Next review due: 19 Dec 2025
The main treatments for children’s brain and spinal cord tumours are surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
Surgery is a common treatment for a brain tumour. Find out why your child has surgery, who does it and other information.
After brain surgery your child usually goes to the paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) or high dependency unit (HDU). Find out what's likely to happen during first few days after surgery.
Brain tumours and their treatment can cause physical and mental changes. Understanding about what they might be can help you cope.
It is essential that parents and other close family have support. Find out what is availble and who can help.
Brain tumours are the second most common type of children’s cancer in the UK. Around 420 children are diagnosed with these tumours each year in the UK.
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