SPINAL TUMOR 

How Common Are Spinal Cord Tumors in Children?

Spinal cord tumors in children are quite uncommon. In fact, these tumors represent a small percentage of all pediatric tumors, making them a rare diagnosis overall. While adults are more likely to develop spinal tumors, it’s important to know that pediatric cases are seen less frequently in clinics and hospitals. Early detection and specialized care can make a significant difference in outcomes for young patients, so staying alert to symptoms and seeking prompt evaluation is always advised.

Spinal Tumor Types

The common types are:

• Meningioma
• Neurofibroma
• Schwannoma
• Astrocytoma
• Chordoma
• Ependymoma
• Glioma

Understanding Tumor Grades

When it comes to spinal cord tumors, grading refers to how quickly the tumor cells are likely to grow and spread. After a tumor is biopsied or removed, a pathologist looks closely at the cells under a microscope to assess their appearance and behavior.

• Low-grade tumors have cells that look more like normal cells and tend to grow slowly.
• High-grade tumors look more abnormal and tend to grow or spread faster, making them more aggressive.

Knowing the tumor grade helps your child’s care team make important decisions about which treatments are likely to be most effective.

Symptoms

Spinal cord tumors show up with various signs and symptoms, especially with the growth of tumors. Tumors may impact nerve roots, the spinal cord, bones, or blood vessels of the spine. Common signs and symptoms are:

• Pain at the site of the tumor
• Back pain, which often spreads to other body parts
• Less sensitivity to heat, cold, and pain
• Losing bowel or bladder function
• Problems with walking
• Back pain, which usually worsens at night
• Muscle weakness, loss of sensation, especially in the limbs
• Muscle weakness (mild or severe) in various parts of the body can progress to paralysis if untreated
• Chronic neck or back pain: This is often the first and most common symptom. The pain might stay in one spot or spread to a wider area and can sometimes appear after a minor injury. If your child complains of persistent or worsening back pain, it’s important to seek medical evaluation.
• Decreased motor skills
• Numbness or sensory loss
• Spinal deformities, such as scoliosis (curvature of the spine), can occur in some children with spinal cord tumors

A common early symptom of spinal tumors is back pain. Pain may also spread from the back to the legs, hips, feet, or arms. And the pain may get worse over time, even during treatment. Depending on the type of tumor, spinal tumors progress at different rates.

Because spinal cord tumors often grow slowly over time, symptoms may develop gradually over several months. This slow progression can make early signs easy to overlook or even mistake for normal “growing pains,” especially in children. For this reason, regular checkups with a pediatrician are extremely important as they can help catch these changes early and ensure timely intervention.

Causes 

Why most of these tumors develop is not clear. However, experts think that defective genes might play a crucial role here. However, it’s generally not clear whether or not such genetic flaws are inherited or simply develop over time. They might be the result of exposure to certain chemicals or other environmental elements as well. However, spinal cord tumors are often associated with inherited syndromes, for example, neurofibromatosis 2, von Hippel-Lindau disease, etc.

When to Seek Medical Attention

If your child experiences ongoing back pain or develops neurological symptoms—such as tingling, numbness, muscle weakness, or trouble walking—it’s important to reach out to their pediatrician as soon as possible. Persistent pain or changes in movement and sensation aren’t typical for growing children and can sometimes suggest something more serious, like a spinal cord tumor.

Watch for these warning signs:

• Back or neck pain that doesn’t improve or keeps coming back
• Pain that interferes with normal activities or sleep
• Unexplained weakness or loss of coordination in arms or legs
• Changes in walking, such as limping or frequent falls
• Decreased sensation to touch, pain, heat, or cold
• Difficulty controlling bowel or bladder function
• Unusual curvature of the spine (scoliosis) that seems to progress rapidly

If any of these symptoms appear, don’t wait. Prompt evaluation by your child’s healthcare provider can make a significant difference, ensuring timely diagnosis and treatment. It’s always better to err on the side of caution—early intervention often leads to better outcomes and peace of mind for your family.

Diagnosis 

Doctors sometimes overlook spinal tumors because they’re not common or, sometimes, their symptoms are similar to those of common conditions. That is why it’s crucial that your doctor knows your child’s complete medical history. Also, they should perform general physical and neurological examinations. If your spine doctor suspects a spinal tumor, they usually perform these tests to confirm the diagnosis and find the exact location of the tumor.

Spinal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

It uses a high-power magnetic field with radio waves to get accurate images of the spine, nerves, and spinal cord, and nerves. MRI is usually a suitable test to diagnose tumors developing in the spinal cord and surrounding tissues. During the test, doctors often inject a contrast agent into a vein in the hand or forearm that highlights certain structures and tissues.

Computerized Tomography (CT)

In this test, doctors use a narrow radiation beam to get detailed images of the spine. Sometimes, they combine it with an injected contrast dye. It makes it easy to figure out abnormal changes in the spinal canal or spinal cord. Specialists rarely use a CT scan to diagnose spinal tumors.

Biopsy

It helps to determine the exact type of tumor. In this process, doctors examine a small tissue sample under a microscope. The biopsy results determine the most suitable treatment options.

Why Surgery May Be Needed for Benign Spinal Cord Tumors

Even if a spinal cord tumor isn’t cancerous, your doctor may still recommend surgery. The reason? As benign tumors grow, they can start to press on the spinal cord or surrounding nerves. This pressure might cause pain, mobility problems, or even permanent nerve damage if left untreated.

In children, protecting the developing nervous system is especially important. By removing the tumor—even if it seems harmless now—doctors aim to prevent potential complications before they become serious. Pediatric specialists from multiple fields often team up to craft a surgical plan that keeps risks as low as possible and supports your child’s long-term health and recovery.

Treatment

Even benign spinal tumors can press on the spinal cord and nerves, leading to serious complications if not treated quickly. Early diagnosis is crucial to prevent nerve damage from becoming permanent. In children, the most common symptom is chronic neck or back pain, which may be localized or spread out and, in some cases, appear after a minor injury such as a fall or sports accident.

Most spinal tumors, whether benign or malignant, require treatment to relieve pressure on the spinal cord and protect neurological function. In many cases, surgical removal of the tumor is the best option to prevent long-term damage. The recovery process is different for every child, but those who receive early diagnosis and treatment generally do well. Some temporary neurological symptoms, like muscle weakness, may improve after surgery unless there has already been significant permanent damage.

Spinal tumor treatment aims to completely eliminate the tumor. However, achieving this goal may be challenging because of the risk of permanent damage to the spinal cord and surrounding nerves. Doctors also consider your child’s age and overall health while choosing a treatment. The other crucial factor that determines the type of treatment is the type of tumor, where it arises from (the spine or spinal canal), and whether it has spread to the spine from any other part of the body.

The most common treatment options for most spinal tumors are:

Monitoring

Often, when your child is being examined for another condition, doctors may discover spinal tumors even before they cause symptoms. Sometimes, there might be small tumors that aren’t growing or pressing the surrounding tissues. In that case, watching them carefully is necessary. At the time of observation, your spine doctor will likely recommend doing periodic CT or MRI scans to monitor the tumor regularly.

Surgery

Surgery is often the only solution for tumors, especially when surgeons can remove them with little risk of damaging the spinal cord or causing nerve injury. The latest techniques and tools allow surgeons to reach tumors that were once thought to be inaccessible. Doctors use high-powered microscopes for microsurgery to easily distinguish tumors from healthy tissue. Also, during surgery, doctors can monitor the function of the spinal cord and other crucial nerves. It is how they minimize the chance of injuring themselves.

Sometimes, they use high-frequency sound waves to break up tumors and thereafter, remove the fragments. However, remember that even with the latest technological support, not all tumors can be totally removed. In that case, there might be radiation therapy, chemotherapy, or both after surgery. When it comes to recovery from spinal surgery, depending on the procedure, it may take weeks or sometimes longer. However, there might be temporary problems such as loss of sensation, bleeding, damage to nerve tissue, etc.

Radiation therapy

It helps remove all the remnants of tumors after surgery. Also, it is beneficial in treating inoperable tumors or those where surgery is too risky. Medications may help relieve the side effects of radiation. Sometimes, experts might adjust the radiation therapy regimen to make the treatment even more effective or help minimize the amount of healthy tissue damage. Modifications may include changing the dosage of radiation or using techniques such as 3-D conformal radiation therapy.

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy uses medications to destroy cancer cells or prevent them from growing. Consult your doctor since they can determine whether chemotherapy will be beneficial or necessary for your child, either in combination with radiation therapy or alone. Side effects may include nausea, vomiting, fatigue, increased risk of infection, hair loss, etc.

Other Options 

Since surgery and radiation therapy can cause inflammation inside the spinal cord, spine doctors sometimes prescribe corticosteroids. It helps reduce swelling both after surgery and during radiation treatments. Indeed, corticosteroids relieve inflammation. But, they are used for short periods to avoid serious side effects.

What is the typical recovery process after spinal cord tumor surgery in children?

Recovery after spinal cord tumor surgery varies for each child, but early diagnosis and timely treatment often help lead to better outcomes. Following surgery, it’s common for some children to experience temporary challenges, such as muscle weakness or changes in sensation. These effects usually improve over time, especially with the support of physical therapy, which plays a key role in rebuilding strength and mobility.

Some children may benefit from a period of inpatient rehabilitation to enhance recovery if needed. Postoperative follow-up visits are essential so the medical team can monitor your child’s progress, assess neurological function, and watch for signs of recurrence or side effects from treatments like chemotherapy or radiation. Keeping up with these visits, along with recommended therapies, supports your child’s ongoing improvement and overall health

Why Rehabilitation and Physical Therapy Matter After Surgery

Recovering from spinal tumor surgery is a unique journey for every child. Even with a successful operation, there can be lingering effects such as weakness or reduced mobility, especially if nerves were affected before treatment. This is where rehabilitation and physical therapy step in as essential parts of the healing process.

Physical therapy plays a crucial role by:

• Helping children regain lost strength and movement.
• Improving balance and coordination that may have been disrupted.
• Speeding up the overall recovery and return to daily activities.
• Reducing the risk of complications from surgery, such as muscle stiffness or joint issues.

In some cases, especially if there were significant neurological deficits before diagnosis or after surgery, a child may need a short stay at a rehabilitation center. There, a specialized team guides the child through exercises and therapies tailored to their needs, ensuring the best possible outcome. Ultimately, combining medical care with rehabilitation and physical therapy gives children the best chance at regaining function, confidence, and independence as they heal.

Final Words 

If your child has any symptoms mentioned above or you are not sure what spine complications could mean, please call our office.  For your convenience, we have offices in Dallas, Arlington, Flower Mound, Frisco, and McKinney, TX, and offer cutting-edge technology, comprehensive care, and dedicated facilities to ensure the best possible care for our patients. Call today to make an appointment for your child. We are expert Spine Doctors and we specialize in children. From diagnosis to treatment, we offer a complete solution to our patients.

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Footnote:

Spine-Health: Spinal Tumor