Cyberknife Radiation Therapy

What is CyberKnife?

The first robotic radiosurgery system in the world that is specifically designed to treat tumors located at different parts of the body such as prostate, brain, pancreas, liver and lungs is known as Cyberknife robotic radiosurgery system.

This treatment is non-invasive alternative to surgery where high doses of radiation are delivered with extreme accuracy. These high dose radiation beams can be given from any angle by precisely concentrating on the tumor while causing minimum damage to the nearby healthy tissue and significant structures such as optic nerve or spinal cord.

Types of Conditions Treated by the CyberKnife Surgery

Cyberknife radiation surgery is used for treating both cancerous and non-cancerous tumors. Following are some of the conditions treated by Cyberknife radiation surgery –

Orbital inflammations, metastatic orbital tumors and orbital lymphomas
Cancers involving the brain
Metastatic liver cancers
Trigeminal neuralgia
Benign brain tumors
Lung cancers
Malformations of blood vessels inside the brain
Pancreatic cancers
Benign brain tumors

Benefits of Cyberknife Surgery

Cyberknife treatment offers many benefits as compared to other treatments. This treatment is ideal for those patients who are unable to go through a traditional surgery. Some of its benefits are –

The tumors can be further treated even if they have received maximum allowed dosage of radiation
No anesthesia
Completely frameless
There is a minimum radiation exposure to healthy organs and tissues
No pain
No hospitalization
No bleeding
No incisions
Immediate return to normal daily routine

Cyberknife Treatment Procedures

The working of a Cyberknife treatment is primarily performed in two ways. The insertion of light-weight deliver equipment is made on a multi-jointed robotic arm in the first approach. This is done for reaching to the tumor in any body part. Image guidance system is used in the second approach that helps the Cyberknife system to allocate and track the tumor.

Robotics and image guidance is used for maintaining an accurate precision and this treatment is specifically useful for those tumors that are near to significant structures. Lesions and tumors can be treated through numerous angles without involving any treatment interruption or clinician intervention.

When is Cyberknife a Suitable Treatment Option?

Radiation therapy, surgery or chemotherapy are some of the traditional therapies that are used in combination with Cyberknife stereotactic radiosurgery. Following are the circumstances that requires Cyberknife system –

When a patient does not want to go through a traditional surgery
When a patient is unable to undergo a surgery
Recurrence of a tumor close to a significant structure like the spine, that previously received maximum dose of radiation
When surgery is not able to remove the entire diseased tissue
When tumor is located near to a significant structure like optic nerves where performing a traditional surgery can increase the risk of damage to these structures
When a surgical procedure is difficult to perform

CyberKnife versus Radiation Therapy

Radiation therapy has been used from a long time for treating malignant and benign tumors. CyberKnife is altogether a new and latest concept that is very different from other treatment methods. The major benefit of Cyberknife as compared to other treatment options is its accurate precision that helps in maximizing the quantity of radiation. This radiation reaches to the abnormal growth or tumor that minimizes the damage to healthy organs and tissues. Cyberknife robotic-assisted radiosurgery is a new hope for those patients who are suffering from localized prostate cancer. This system is also beneficial for treating prostate cancer that has come back again after previous treatment or a radical prostatectomy.

Radiosurgery does not involve the removal of the tumor and uses high radiation doses for destroying the tumor cells. A linear accelerator produces numerous radiation beams that are directed at the abnormal growth inside the body. Modified linear accelerators and the Gamma Knife are considered as the most common radiosurgery systems.