The following is intended to be only a brief summary of the information presented in the above four sources on brain tumors. Most brain tumors are named for both type of cell from which the tumor originated and the location of the tumor in the brain. Thus, the tumor is a glioma which is located in the brain stem. This name does not give any information about the type of glioma cell from which it arose. Glioma is a general term for tumors that arise from glial tissues, which are the supportive tissues of the brain.
Blastomas are malignant tumors whose cells have undeveloped or embryonic characteristics.
A carcinoma is a malignant tumor that arises from skin or the lining of digestive, respiratory, or urogenital systems. Brain tumors are usually either gliomas or blastomas. Common pediatric brain tumors are medulloblastoma, ependymoma, astrocytoma, brain stem and optical nerve gliomas, and gangliogliomas. However, any type of brain tumor can occur in children as well as adults. Medulloblastomas are usually located in the cerebellum and are fast growing and highly malignant.