Causes and management of headaches in cancer patients.

Headache is a frequent accompaniment of brain tumors. Since management of patients with these tumors is often palliative, proper treatment of symptoms such as headache becomes a key issue in preserving the patient's quality of life. Successful management of brain tumor headache requires an understanding of the etiology and pathophysiology of the various types of brain tumor headaches, followed by appropriate application of the specific therapeutic modality.