Brain Conditions

Radiosurgery Treatment for Conditions of the Brain

Stereotactic radiosurgery is incredibly accurate, so it may be one option your doctor considers when evaluating treatments for a condition of the brain. Radiosurgery precisely targets abnormal areas of the brain, which minimizes the risk of radiation affecting nearby healthy parts of the brain.

Accuracy counts

Both CyberKnife and Gamma Knife aim many beams of radiation at the same target from multiple directions and angles according to a treatment plan that is designed just for you. CyberKnife moves around you and delivers the beams one at a time. Gamma Knife stays in one place and delivers all of the beams at the same time.

Alone, each beam of radiation is not strong enough to damage the part of the brain it travels through on the way to the target. Where they meet, however, the combined strength is able to destroy the cells. That is very important – especially when treating very sensitive areas in your brain.

The combined total amount of radiation from all of those individual beams is much higher than the amount of radiation that could be delivered by conventional radiation, which often leads to better and safer tumor control and cure.

An alternative to surgery

Radiosurgery may be an alternative to brain surgery, so a patient is able to:

• Avoid general anesthesia, an incision in his or her scalp, and the risk of infection or other surgical complications
• Avoid shaving his or her head in preparation for treatment
• Experience a much shorter recovery time than after surgery
• Usually leave the center right after treatment and resume your normal daily activities

Your doctor may recommend radiosurgery if you have had multiple surgeries already and would like to avoid additional surgeries, or you are too sick to have surgery. If you have more than one serious medical condition, your doctor may determine radiosurgery is a safer option for you. Radiosurgery may, in fact, be your best option regardless of your situation.

Treating conditions of the brain with radiosurgery

Radiosurgery can be used to treat:

• Brain tumors (tumors originating in the brain)
  • Benign brain tumors (not cancer), such as meningioma, acoustic neuroma, pituitary adenoma
  • Malignant brain tumors (cancer), such as gliomas
• Metastatic brain tumors (cancer that has spread to the brain from another area of the body)
• Recurrent or residual brain tumors
• Arteriovenous malformation (AVM)
• Essential tremor
• Trigeminal neuralgia (also known as tic douloureaux)

Although both CyberKnife and Gamma Knife are used to treat conditions of the brain, your doctor may recommend one or the other based on your particular situation.

Our team of experts

The radiosurgery experts at the Swedish Radiosurgery Center have many years of experience using radiosurgery to treat conditions of the brain. Because we have both CyberKnife and Gamma Knife in our center, our radiation oncologists and neurosurgeons are able to determine the very best technology that will produce the very best possible results.