What is a Meningioma?
Meningiomas are the most common kind of brain tumor accounting for 30 percent of all brain tumors.
While a brain tumor diagnosis is frightening, 90% of Meningiomas are benign and are treatable, including non-invasively.
Meningiomas develop from the membrane covering the brain and spinal cord.
While they tend to grow slowly over months or years, they can become large, crowding the brain and cause life-threatening complications.
What are the Symptoms of Meningiomas?
Small Meningiomas may not cause any symptoms and are often accidentally discovered while being examined for other problems, such as a head injury.
However as they grow they can cause pressure inside the skull causing headaches, nausea, vomiting, vision, motor & speech problems and seizures.
Fortunately There are Treatment Options for Meningiomas in Miami:
Some doctors may recommend microsurgery to remove meningiomas, however that’s riskier than non-invasive radiation therapy like CyberKnife.
The success rate for treating Brain or Spine Meningiomas with CyberKnife Stereotactic Radiosurgery is very high.
In fact, about 95 percent of Meningiomas stop growing after one treatment or a small series of treatments.
A major advantage to CyberKnife is that it’s non-invasive and doesn’t require a metal frame to be screwed into the patient’s skull to perform treatment like with the Gamma Knife.
Another advantage of CyberKnife therapy is the ability to deliver treatment in one to five sessions, which makes it possible to more safely treat some meningiomas that are larger or located next to critical structures like the optic nerve.
The CyberKnife uses highly focused and precisely aimed radiation beams that destroy the tumor while sparing surrounding healthy tissue.
The CyberKnife will move slowly around you during treatment. You won’t feel a thing. It’s completely pain free.
Patients dress comfortably in their own clothes and can bring music to listen to during the treatment. Nothing will be required of the patient during the treatment, except to relax. In fact, patients often sleep through the treatment.
If patients have symptoms like headaches, double vision, seizures, or other symptoms, these likely will improve after CyberKnife, though improvements typically take several months or longer in some cases.
At the CyberKnife Center of Miami we understand that the diagnosis and treatment of a meningioma may be a very emotional experience for you and your loved ones.
That’s why our medical team takes every precaution to put your mind at ease. We will explain the treatment process every step of the way and the benefits so you know exactly what to expect.
If you have been told you have a Meningioma, you owe it to yourself to contact CyberKnife Miami to see if you might be a candidate for CyberKnife Radiation Therapy. Call us today at 305-279-2900 or 1-800-204-0455.
Click Here to listen to CyberKnife Miami’s Medical Director & Radiation Oncologist Dr. Mark Pomper explain treatment options for Brain and Spine Meningiomas and why CyberKnife is a great non-invasive option.