By: Fabiola Grosshan
Submitted: 2010-10-22 07:35:23 | Word Count: 385
Gamma knife surgery can be used in a big variety of problems. To begin with, specific malignant tumors that begin or continue on to the brain, benign brain tumors, blood vessels problems, and functional problems can all be treated with the Gamma Knife process. In the future, it may be used for Parkinson's disease and epilepsy.
The Gamma Knife uses a process called stereotactic radiosurgery that beams multiple rays of radiation in three dimensions to focus on a small volume, such as a tumor. This allows for safe delivery of the radiation. Physicians at a brain tumor clinic can use a computer to figure out their targets for this treatment. They can then fine-tune the area of treatment until the optimal dose can be determined and delivered.
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There are a variety of people who make up this multidisciplinary medical team. You will have a medical radiation physicist, a radiation oncologist, and a neurosurgeon, who are all trained specifically to use the Gamma Knife. The medical physicist makes sure that all the imaging and treatment plan computers are set to an acceptable level. Each person on the team does their part to ensure a safe treatment process.
The advantage of using the Gamma Knife is that it is noninvasive brain surgery; there is no need for an incision, so the chances of infection and hemorrhaging are greatly reduced. The tumor that is treated receives the maximum dosage of radiation with little risk to any nearby tissue. Also, the Gamma Knife is able to stop tumor growth in about 90-95% of all patients. This is an incredibly good figure.
When you have Trigeminal Neuralgia, you have pain around the cranial nerves near the base of the brain. With Trigeminal Neuralgia radiosurgery, which involves using the Gamma Knife, you are placed into a helmet-like Gamma Knife apparatus. The radiation comes out of the helmet itself. This typically takes about 4-5 hours and then the patient spends the night and goes home the next day.
The Gamma Knife is truly a miraculous way of treating brain tumors in a non-invasive and positive way to ensure the recovery of the largest amount of patients possible.
