Epilepsy
Half of all patients with glioblastoma also develop epileptic seizures in the course of the disease. These seizures can sometimes even be the first sign of the tumor leading to a diagnosis. If the tumor is then surgically removed, the risk of seizures initially decreases significantly. In principle, however, patients with a brain tumor have a significantly increased risk of epilepsy, so after the first seizure, drug-based seizure prophylaxis should definitely be started to reduce the risk of further seizures.
Is a glioblastoma inheritable?
Fortunately, in most cases this question can be answered with a clear no. Even if a relative, e.g. a parent, has had a glioblastoma, the risk of developing this brain tumor is no higher than in the general population. Glioblastoma is a sporadically occurring tumor, i.e. the tumor occurs randomly and there is no evidence of heredity.
There are, however, rare genetic diseases that are generally associated with an increased risk of malignant tumors, such as Li-Fraumeni syndrome or Turcot syndrome. In affected families, glioblastomas can also occur more frequently.
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