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ARCHBOLD.ORG
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SUMMER 2015
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Gamma Knife®: Simple and painless
THE GAMMA KNIFE®
treatment
procedure is simple, painless and
straightforward. The treatment consists
of five steps:
1
Attaching the stereotactic head
frame.
The frame allows the phy-
sicians to accurately pinpoint the target
to be treated in the patient’s brain. The
lightweight frame, which is attached
to the patient’s head with four pins,
ensures that the radiation beams can
be directed with precision at the target.
The frame also prevents the patient’s
head from moving during imaging and
treatment. Local anesthetic is applied
where the pins are to be attached.
2
Imaging: CT, MRI or angiog-
raphy.
Imaging is required to
determine the exact size, shape and
position of the tumor. During imaging,
a coordinate box is placed on the head
frame to provide reference points on
the images for the treatment plan.
After imaging, the coordinate box is
removed.
3
Treatment planning.
Once your
images have been taken, the
patient rests while the Gamma Knife®
team develops a very precise and
accurate treatment plan. Each treat-
ment plan is unique; every patient’s
plan is individually designed to address
the specific medical condition. The
Gamma Knife® team makes the plan
in a specially designed computer and
calculates how the treatment should
be performed.
4
The treatment.
Once the pa-
tient’s treatment plan is com-
plete, the actual treatment can start.
The patient lays down on the treatment
couch and the head frame is attached.
The patient is awake during the proce-
dure and able to communicate with the
doctors and nurse through an audio
and video connection.
When the treatment begins, the
couch moves into the dome section of
the unit. The treatment is silent and to-
tally painless. Often the patient will lis-
ten to music during the treatment, and
they are actually encouraged to bring
the music of their choice. The team
monitors the procedure at all times.
The treatment lasts somewhere
between a few minutes to more than
an hour, depending on the number of
tumors that are treated, as well as the
size and shape of each target.
5
After treatment.
When your
treatment is complete, the head
frame is removed. Some patients
experience a mild headache or minor
swelling where the head frame was
attached, but most report no prob-
lems. Most patients are able to return
to normal routines in a day or so.
What happens next?
The effects of treatment occur
over time. Radiation treatments
are designed to stop the growth of
tumors or dysfunctional tissue, which
means that the effect will be seen
over a period of weeks or months. The
Gamma Knife® team stays in contact
with patients to assess their progress,
which may include follow-up MRI, CT
or angiography images.
The Gamma
Knife® team
From physics to radiation oncology, and neurosurgery to nursing, the dynamics of Archbold’s Gamma Knife®
team haven’t changed in the last 12 years, and that’s a primary reason the program has been so successful.
The team is composed of physicist Ramesh Nair, PhD; a Gamma Knife®-trained nurse, Janet Collins, RN, BSN;
neurosurgeon Gerald Kadis, MD; radiation oncologists David Saunders, MD, and Steve Johnson, MD; and
neurosurgeon Craig A. Fredericks, MD.
For more information
about Gamma Knife®,
call 229.584.5400.