A brain tumor that looked like fast-moving dementia
Original title: Butterfly Glioma of the Corpus Callosum Mimicking Rapidly Progressive Dementia.
How far along is this research?
- Lab cells
- Animals
- Review
- Tested in people
This was tested in people. That is the most reliable kind of research we share.
This is one patient's case, not a test of a new treatment.
The short version
One woman's sudden confusion and behavior changes turned out to be a brain tumor, not dementia.
What was studied. This is a report about one patient. A 65-year-old woman had two weeks of vomiting, growing confusion, weakness, speech that did not make sense, thinking problems, and loss of bladder and bowel control. She had already been treated for sudden dementia with donepezil and memantine, but no one had scanned her brain first.
What they found. An MRI with contrast showed a large mass in the band of tissue that joins the two sides of the brain, called the corpus callosum. It measured more than 65 x 61 mm and reached into both front parts of the brain. Doctors believed it was a high grade glioma: A tumor that starts in the glial cells, the support cells of the brain and spinal cord. Gliomas are graded 1 to 4 by how fast they tend to grow. See the glossary, a fast growing brain tumor, and planned a needle biopsy to confirm it. She was given steroids, seizure medicine, antibiotics, and supportive care, and she improved after that.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: Sudden changes in memory, behavior, or thinking are not always dementia. A brain scan early on can find a tumor that is causing the symptoms. That matters most when there are also physical signs, such as weakness on one side, stiffness, or vomiting.
What it doesn't mean: This is one person's story, not a study of many people. It does not test any new treatment, and it is not a cure. Most people with memory or behavior changes do not have a brain tumor. Even here, the tumor was only suspected from the scan, and a biopsy was still needed to be sure. This report cannot tell you what will happen in your own case. Talk with your own doctor about your symptoms.
Source: PubMed, June 25, 2026 · Read the original
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