High grade glioma
A high grade glioma (HGG) is a type of high grade brain tumour. It is the most common primary brain tumour in adults. It can also occur in children, but this is rare. The term ‘high grade glioma’ covers multiple types of tumour, including grade 3 and grade 4 astrocytomas and glioblastomas.
Short summary
High grade gliomas are grade 3 and grade 4 gliomas. They develop from the glial cells in the brain and can be different types of tumours, including astrocytomas and glioblastomas.
High grade gliomas are more likely to occur in adults than children.
Symptoms can include headaches, nausea and vomiting, fatigue and more. And, treatments can include surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy.
On this page, we’ll discuss the following in more detail:
- What is a high grade glioma?
- Who can get a high grade glioma?
- Causes of high grade glioma
- High grade glioma symptoms
- High grade glioma treatment
- High grade glioma life expectancy
Get support
It’s normal to feel shocked if you or someone you know has been diagnosed with a brain tumour. Our Support Team can answer questions you have or provide a listening ear if you need one.
Get your free Information Pack
Our Brain Tumour Information Pack can help you better understand your diagnosis and feel confident talking to your medical team.
Get the BRIAN app
BRIAN is our trusted online app where you can track your experience, compare it with others who’ve been there and get the knowledge you need to make informed decisions.
What is a high grade glioma?
High grade gliomas are a more aggressive type of glioma, which is a brain tumour that grows from the glial cells in the brain.
High grade gliomas are primary brain tumours. This means they start in the brain as opposed to spread there from elsewhere in the body. But, there is no specific area in the brain that they occur. In fact, they can begin in any part of the central nervous system, which is the brain and spinal cord.
According to the new World Health Organisation classification of brain tumours, there are different types of high grade glioma. Some occur more frequently in adults and others occur more frequently in children.
For example, diffuse midline glioma (previously called DIPG) is a type of high grade glioma that occurs more frequently in children. Glioblastoma, on the other hand, occurs more frequently in adults.
High grade gliomas:
- grow quickly
- are diffuse, which means part of them spread into the healthy tissue surrounding the tumour
- might come back, even after treatment
- are sometimes known as brain cancer or are called malignant.
Who can get a high grade glioma?
High grade gliomas are the most common type of primary brain tumour in adults.
But, high grade gliomas are less common in children. They make up around 8% of childhood brain tumours diagnosed each year, affecting less than 30 children.
Causes of high grade glioma
As is the case with all brain tumours, there is no clear cause of high grade gliomas.
There are some potential risk factors, but these are not backed up with enough scientific evidence. This is because everyone has different genetics, lifestyles, and medical histories. So, it’s very difficult to find a single common factor.
We are constantly funding research that aims to understand more about brain tumours and ultimately find cures for them.
High grade glioma symptoms
High grade gliomas can form in different parts of the brain, which look after different functions. So, the symptoms you experience depend on where the tumour is located in the brain.
It could also depend on the type of treatment you are given and if there is an increase of pressure in your head, called raised intracranial pressure.
With that in mind, possible high grade glioma symptoms include:
- nausea or vomiting
- headaches
- fatigue
- seizures (epilepsy)
- personality changes, like increased irritability
- problems with co-ordination and balance
If you are worried that you or someone you know has some of these symptoms, find out more with our symptom checker by clicking the button below.
High grade glioma treatment
There isn’t a single high grade glioma treatment approach that is used for every person who is diagnosed.
There are a lot of things to consider, like where the tumour is located in your brain, whether it has spread, whether surgery is possible, how well you react to treatment and more.
So, if you are diagnosed, your treatment will be carefully planned by your healthcare team.
That being said, some common high grade glioma treatments include:
Neurosurgery
This is surgery done on the brain or spinal cord by a specialist surgeon.
The aim of neurosurgery could be to remove as much of the tumour as possible. Or, it could be to remove a small part (called a biopsy) to study.
High grade gliomas are able to spread in the brain, so neurosurgery might not always be possible.
Radiotherapy
Radiotherapy uses radiation to try to break down brain tumours cells.
This treatment might be used after surgery to try to destroy any tumour cells that were left behind. Or, it might be used instead of surgery if surgery isn’t possible.
Radiotherapy is more likely to be used on adults than young children. This is because it can have unwanted effects on children under the age of three.
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy uses tumour-fighting drugs to try to reduce or destroy brain tumour cells. These drugs are designed to stop the tumour cells from dividing and copying themselves.
Chemotherapy drugs also affect healthy cells. But, these cells are able to recover better than cancer cells can.
Chemotherapy might be given via an injection or drip, or it could be swallowed in pill or capsule form.
Other high grade glioma treatment options
You can also ask your medical team about:
- clinical trials, which are early stages of new treatments being developed
- 5-ALA, which is a ‘pink drink’ that helps surgeons see brain tumour cells
- biobanking, which is a way of storing tumour samples to research in the future.
High grade glioma life expectancy
Everyone is different. So, it’s impossible to say exactly how you will respond to treatment.
High grade glioma life expectancy depends on the location of the tumour, the grade of the tumour, the treatment given and much more.
And, because this is a relatively new classification defined by the World Health Organisation in 2021, we don’t yet have enough recorded data to give clear averages. Click the button below to learn more.
Support and Information Services
Research & Clinical Trials Information
You can also join our active online community.
In this section
Get support
If you need someone to talk to or advice on where to get help, our Support and Information team is available by phone, email or live-chat.
Recommended reading
Share your experiences and help create change
By taking part in our Improving Brain Tumour Care surveys and sharing your experiences, you can help us improve treatment and care for everyone affected by a brain tumour.