Side Effects Of Gamma Knife Surgery For Meningioma

Gamma knife surgery is also used in people who can t undergo conventional surgery because of health problems or who choose to avoid surgery.

Side effects of gamma knife surgery for meningioma. If this does occur it is usually many years. Gamma knife treatment may be used as a primary management option or after surgery for residual meningiomas. I had 2 recurrent meningioma tumors from one that i originally had in 2001. Gamma knife is typically a one time outpatient treatment that uses high dose ionizing radiation.

Gamma knife radiosurgery. No medical procedure is without potential risks or side effects and gamma knife radiosurgery is no exception. As a result there is a small risk of developing a second cancer in an area that got radiation for example a meningioma of the coverings of the brain another brain tumor or less likely a bone cancer in the skull. What are the side effects of gamma knife surgery.

The majority of meningiomas 3 to 4 centimeters and smaller can be treated with gamma knife so you should consult with a neurosurgeon about whether you re a candidate for this. Despite the name a gamma knife is not a knife but rather a system for delivering very targeted radiation treatment. I had the original one in 2001 removed surgically by a neurosurgeon in atlanta which is where i live. Gamma knife side effects for acoustic neuroma treatment the most common side effect from gamma knife or any form of stereotactic radiosurgery is hearing loss says ted mcrackan md mscr director skull base center.

Stereotactic radiosurgery srs uses many precisely focused radiation beams to treat tumors and other problems in the brain neck lungs liver spine and other parts of the body. Vincent t devita jr. In larger meningiomas the treatment may include a tumor resection followed by gamma knife radiosurgery for the residual tumor. Gamma knife surgery successfully treats 90 to 95 percent of meningioma cases and is particularly useful for meningiomas that involve vital structures in the brain.

It may also help those whose malignant tumors don t respond to intensity modulated radiation therapy. Gamma knife radiosurgery is not actually surgery at all. Hi jmb73 i had gamma knife surgery in aug 2017 at mayo in rochester mn. What are the side effects of gamma knife surgery.

However as discussed earlier many of the risks and side effects are less severe and less common when compared to other meningioma treatment options. Gamma knife is also used frequently for meningiomas which grow back after surgery. Gamma knife radiosurgery is a painless procedure that uses hundreds of highly focused radiation beams to target tumors and lesions within the brain with no surgical incision. Gamma knife is used to kill or shrink non cancerous and metastatic tumors in the brain.

Typically in a single outpatient session patients receive their treatment plan and treatment no icu no hospitalization.