An Introduction To Gamma Knife Surgery
Gamma Knife is a non-invasive medical treatment used to treat tumor, vascular malformations, and other types of abnormalities in the brain. Gamma Knife is primarily used for the treatment of tumors that are difficult or impossible to remove surgically due to their location or size. It uses focused beams of radiation aimed at the exact area on the brain that needs to be treated.
Risks associated with Gamma Knife include memory loss and seizure, although they rarely occur in patients receiving this kind of treatment. Post-treatment complications generally resolve quickly within 2 weeks after treatment whereas neurological side effects might last longer or may even become permanent. Patients should be aware that there is no guarantee that all tumors will be completely eradicated after receiving Gamma Knife therapy; some residual tumor growth may still occur afterwards despite successful treatment.
The Gamma Knife procedure itself takes roughly 20 minutes but can take up to eight hours in total including prepping and recovery time. During the treatment, patients are placed in a circular frame headgear which helps guide the radiotherapy beams and focuses them on the exact target location. Then radiation is released with very low doses at multiple angles in order to deliver maximum benefit with minimal side effects or collateral damages. Recovery time ranges patient by patient based on their specific diagnosis but most report feeling immediately better soon after the radiation treatment has been completed.
The Gamma Knife is particularly useful for treating malignant tumors, vascular malformations, and structural lesions located deep within our brain tissues, which makes it a therapeutic tool of choice for physicians across many neurological specialties such as neurosurgery and body imaging departments of hospitals who have access to this device. Due its accuracy and safety profile, patients can almost immediately resume their normal activities with no risk of relapse or further operations being needed when using this technique compared to more traditional forms of radiotherapy interventions such as stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS).
Overall, Gamma Knife treatments offer lesser risks and higher efficacy when compared with other surgical interventions making it an excellent option for those who may be seeking treatment options that are both safe and effective in addressing neurologically related health issues such as brain tumors or malformations.
