What happens during Gamma Knife treatment?
Once a patient’s condition is reviewed by our multidisciplinary team and Gamma Knife treatment is deemed appropriate, the patient will be scheduled for a treatment day. On the day of treatment, there are several steps that take place. First, a lightweight frame is attached to the patient’s head. Local anesthesia is used before the frame is secured in place. The patient then has an MRI or CT imaging study, or in the case of an arteriovenous malformation, angiography, may be needed in order to precisely locate the diseased area. Data from the imaging study is transferred into the treatment planning computer. While the patient rests, the treatment team (a neurosurgeon, radiation oncologist and physicist) uses advanced software to determine the treatment plan. This takes one or two hours to complete, depending on the complexity and location of the disease. When the individual treatment plan is completed, the patient is placed on the Gamma Knife couch and precisely positioned. The patient i
First, a lightweight frame is attached to the patients head. Local anesthesia is used before the frame is secured in place. The patient then has an MRI imaging study or, in the case of an arteriovenous malformation, angiography, may be needed in order to precisely locate the abnormal area. Data from the imaging study is transferred into the treatment planning computer. While the patient rests, the treatment team (a neurosurgeon, radiation oncologist and medical physicist) uses advanced software to determine the treatment plan. This takes one or two hours to complete, depending on the complexity and location of the disease. When the individual treatment plan is completed, the patient is placed on the Gamma Knife couch and precisely positioned. The patient is then moved automatically, head first into the machine, and treatment begins. Treatment typically lasts from 15 minutes to an hour, during which time the patient feels nothing unusual. Following treatment, the patient is automaticall
