# Which Cancer of the Brain = 90 days **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 1, 2015, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-cancer-of-the-brain-90-days/713906 "2015-03-01T02:44:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-cancer-of-the-brain-90-days/713906/1 "2015-03-01T02:44:43Z")
Apparently, there is a specific variety of brain cancer which is famous for the “90 days to live” prognoses. What is its name? Yeah, always a fun topic… ---
**Author:** ![troubledwater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f4b2a3/32.png) [@troubledwater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/troubledwater)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-cancer-of-the-brain-90-days/713906/2 "2015-03-01T03:37:15Z")
[Glioblastoma multiforme](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glioblastoma_multiforme#Prognosis)? ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-cancer-of-the-brain-90-days/713906/3 "2015-03-01T03:58:30Z")
According to that Wiki entry, treatment is possible - which was not performed in the case I know about - even though it would have been available - she was an employee of U of Texas, so her health care was not limited by insurance, and at age 50, she was probably a good candidate for surgery. This was a second cancer, metabolized from lung cancer, so maybe too far gone\> ---
**Author:** ![Sigene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df788c/32.png) [@Sigene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigene)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-cancer-of-the-brain-90-days/713906/4 "2015-03-01T04:05:45Z")
This is what my first wife had. She had surgery, radiation, and Chemo. She was able to last 13 months after her last treatments. 20 years ago this week. Still sucks. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-cancer-of-the-brain-90-days/713906/5 "2015-03-01T04:10:41Z")
Leptomeningeal carcinomatosis, a form of free-floating cancer cells in the CSF, killed my father roughly ninety days from diagnosis. Apparently that is a common result. ---
**Author:** ![Twoflower](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/twoflower/32/22_2.png) [@Twoflower](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Twoflower)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-cancer-of-the-brain-90-days/713906/6 "2015-03-01T04:31:23Z")
> [@usedtobe](#): > > This was a second cancer, metabolized from lung cancer, so maybe too far gone\> Lung cancer that has spread to the brain is a completely different disease than brain cancer. There really is no option beyond palliative care at that point. ---
**Author:** ![sweat209](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc348/32.png) [@sweat209](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweat209)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-cancer-of-the-brain-90-days/713906/7 "2015-03-01T05:52:45Z")
Brain cancer has a much better survival rates than lung cancer at 15% of a 5 year survival rates. 32% of 5 year survival rates for Brain. [![](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Yn1crn6Gpak/T476j27qtQI/AAAAAAAAAz4/NhkYXSVFGBs/s1600/Survival+Rate+by+Cancer+Type.png) ](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Yn1crn6Gpak/T476j27qtQI/AAAAAAAAAz4/NhkYXSVFGBs/s1600/Survival+Rate+by+Cancer+Type.png) These stats are bit old on that link. With worse being Liver and Bile duct at 7% and pancreas at 4% of the 5 year survival rates. ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-cancer-of-the-brain-90-days/713906/8 "2015-03-01T06:32:47Z")
The official cause of death was listed as “cancer of the brain”. I don’t know what kind of lung cancer started it. A very bright person who started smoking at 14 and didn’t stop until she had a diagnoses of lung cancer. ---
**Author:** ![sweat209](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc348/32.png) [@sweat209](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweat209)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-cancer-of-the-brain-90-days/713906/9 "2015-03-01T07:55:48Z")
> [@usedtobe](#): > > The official cause of death was listed as “cancer of the brain”. > I don’t know what kind of lung cancer started it. > > A very bright person who started smoking at 14 and didn’t stop until she had a diagnoses of lung cancer. Brain cancer has nothing to do with lung cancer and likewise lung cancer has nothing to do with brain cancer. You are comparing apples to oranges. To very different cancers. ---
**Author:** ![jezzaOZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a9a28c/32.png) [@jezzaOZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jezzaOZ)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 8:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-cancer-of-the-brain-90-days/713906/10 "2015-03-01T08:44:13Z")
As briefly mentioned, Pancreatic Cancer is the go-to cancer for a quick death. With Pancreatic Cancer the interval between first diagnosis and death is measured in low weeks to a few months. That’s because it is very difficult to diagnose in early stages. It also presents in slightly different ways that vary the life expectancy - but not much. Other more famous cancers such as Mesothelioma are very fatal but take a while to kill, and in Stephen Jay Gould’s case never actually killed him after many years. ---
**Author:** ![rsa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/839c29/32.png) [@rsa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rsa)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2015, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-cancer-of-the-brain-90-days/713906/11 "2015-03-02T02:13:55Z")
> [@usedtobe](#): > > According to that Wiki entry, treatment is possible - which was not performed in the case I know about - even though it would have been available - she was an employee of U of Texas, so her health care was not limited by insurance, and at age 50, she was probably a good candidate for surgery. > This was a second cancer, metabolized from lung cancer, so maybe too far gone\> I think you meant metastasized. If so, the cancer in the brain are lung cancer cells.