Nuclear Oncology

Stereotactic radiosurgery, also called stereotactic radiotherapy is a highly accurate form of radiation therapy used primarily to treat tumors and other abnormalities of the brain. Today radiosurgery is also being used to treat cancer in other parts of the body in a procedure called stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT).

Despite its name, stereotactic radiosurgery is a non-surgical procedure that delivers highly focused radiation doses far higher than traditional radiation therapy while avoiding healthy tissue organs nearby.

Stereotactic radiosurgery depends on several technologies:

* Three-dimensional images that determine the exact coordinates of the target within the body
* Systems to immobilize and position the patient carefully
* Beams of gamma rays or X rays converge is highly focused on a tumor or abnormal radiation on a
* In some cases, image-guided radiotherapy (IGRT) which uses medical imaging to confirm the location of a tumor immediately before or during the administration of radiation to further improve the precision and accuracy of treatment

The three-dimensional imaging such as CT, MRI and PET / CT is used to locate the tumor or abnormality within the body and define its exact size and shape. These images guide treatment planning, where radiation beams are designed to converge on the target area from different angles and planes, as well as the careful positioning of the patient for therapy sessions.

Although stereotactic radiosurgery is often completed in one session a day, doctors often recommend multiple treatments, especially for tumors larger than one inch in diameter. The procedure is usually referred to as fractionated stereotactic radiotherapy when given two to five treatments.

Stereotactic radiosurgery and SBRT are important alternatives to invasive surgery, especially for patients who can not undergo surgery, and for tumors and abnormalities that are:

* Elusive
* Located near vital organs
* Subject to movement within the body

Radiosurgery is used to treat:

* Many types of brain tumors, including:
* Benign and malignant
* Primary and metastatic
* Single and multiple
* Residual tumors after surgery
* Intracranial tumors, orbital and skull base
* Arteriovenous malformations (Aves), a tangle of blood vessels expanded that interferes with normal blood flow in the brain and sometimes bleeds.
* Other neurological conditions.

The SBRT currently being used and / or is being investigated for use in treating malignant and benign tumors of small to medium in body, including:

* Lung
* Liver
* Abdomen
* Column
* Prostate
* Head or neck

Stereotactic radiosurgery works the same way as other forms of radiation treatment. It does not remove the tumor itself, but rather damages the DNA of cancer cells. As a result, those cells lose their ability to reproduce. After treatment, benign tumors usually shrink over a period of 18 months to two years. And metastatic malignant tumors shrink so much faster, even within a couple of months. Being treated with radiosurgery, arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) begin to grow thicker and closed slowly, usually over a period of several years.