Although the actual cause of brain cancer is unknown to doctors, some doctors say that just like any other cancer, family history of cancer and exposure to radiation are the most common risk factors among children.
Children who have been treated with chemotherapy and radiatiotheraphy may sometimes develop cancer of the brain as a secondary effect, although it is rare occurrence in Africa.

Cancerous brain tumours can either be primary or secondary. Primary cancerous brain tumours develop in the brain; while secondary tumours happen when cells from a cancer that started somewhere else in the body spreads to the brain. Medullo blastoma, which develops at the back of the brain, is common among children and may spread to other parts of the brain or to the spinal cord. The second common is gilomas, which develop from the supporting cells of the brain known as glial cells.

Source: Clinic on Aids Research by DR AISHA LUKWAGO.

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