Aggressive treatments for cancers that have metastasized or spread throughout the body can be harsh on a patient, involve a lot of downtime or time inside a hospital, and it can greatly diminish the quality of life that a patient has.
And while there may not be a cure, you may be able to extend your life by many months and even years, you can often get great relief from pain, and an increased quality of life with CyberKnife, a non-invasive form of radiation therapy.
CyberKnife can help treat metastatic cancers in a kinder gentler way – without the harsh side effects of other treatments.
Metastatic cancer is the most common form of cancer the experts at the CyberKnife Center of Miami treat. We regularly help patients with metastatic colon, lung, liver, lymph node, brain and prostate cancers.
CyberKnife is known as stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT). Its image-guided robotic technology enables the targeted radiation beams to track a tumor’s movement in real time. The technology delivers radiation directly to the tumor, leaving healthy surrounding tissue and nearby vital organs unharmed. This targeted therapy makes it possible to deliver the highest dose of radiation possible.
With CyberKnife, patients require a much shorter course of treatment than with traditional radiation because SBRT delivers precise radiation directly to the tumor site. According to Accuray, the maker of CyberKnife, there are several studies looking at CyberKnife’s efficacy for metastatic cancers including lung, pancreatic, cervical, breast and brain cancers.
CyberKnife for Metastatic Lung Cancer
A recent study looking at CyberKnife for metastatic lung cancer shows that the treatment is effective with “acceptable toxicity.”
“The 2-year local control, progression-free survival, and overall survival rates were 89.1%, 37.1%, and 71.3%, respectively,” according to the study.
CyberKnife for Metastatic Liver and Colon Cancers
According to the National Institutes of Health, secondary liver cancer accounts for 25% or one quarter of all the cases of cancer metastases. The American Cancer Society says one of the most common cancers to spread to the liver is colorectal cancer.
In fact, between 20% and 25% of colorectal cancer patients will develop liver cancer as well.
Surgery may be the standard of care for cancers that spread to the liver. But there are other options including CyberKnife.
“The data for the use of SBRT in the setting of liver metastasis is encouraging. It offers a far less invasive approach to treatment with excellent local control and acceptable toxicity compared to Hepatic resection or even other less invasive measures such as Radiofrequency ablation (RFA), Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE), or Radioembolization,” the authors from the University of Tennessee write.
According to a Dutch study from 2021, with SBRT, the one-year survival rate for metastatic liver cancer was 84% at one year and 44% at three years.
“Treating liver cancer with traditional radiation therapy is not an option due to the sensitivity of liver tissue to radiation. CyberKnife’s tracking technology eliminates that risk,” according to CyberKnife Miami’s medical director, Dr. Mark Pomper. “The system can continuously pinpoint and follow a tumor’s exact location as the patient breathes normally while on the treatment table, enabling 100 to 200 radiation beams to attack only the tumor from all different angles, leaving healthy tissue unharmed. It kills the tumor cells and over time the tumor disappears. CyberKnife Radiotherapy delivers high doses of radiation in three to five treatments with excellent control rates.”
CyberKnife for Metastatic Prostate Cancer
When prostate cancer spreads, it tends to metastasize to the bones in 85-to-90-percent of cases, according to the Prostate Cancer Foundation. The cancer can also spread to the lymph nodes, liver or lungs, according to WebMD.
Treatment goals for metastatic prostate cancer change from curing the cancer to managing symptoms, controlling pain, slowing tumor growth and shrinking tumors. Treatments with CyberKnife, can keep the cancer at bay for years and lead to better quality of life at the same time.
The CyberKnife Advantage for Metastatic Cancers
There are some distinct advantages of CyberKnife for metastatic cancers.
- It’s noninvasive.
- There are no risks of infection or long periods of downtime like there is with surgery.
- The CyberKnife radiation beams, which target and destroy the tumor, are exceedingly precise. That means healthy tissue is unharmed.
- Treatments are outpatient and last 30 to 60 minutes.
- Side effects are minimal and may include fatigue and nausea.
- Patients can be treated repeatedly with CyberKnife.
CyberKnife Treatment Miami
If you or someone you love needs help treating metastatic cancer or if you want another opinion, contact the experts at CyberKnife Miami for a consultation.
If you would like to find out more about metastatic cancer treatment with CyberKnife, call us at 305-279-2900 or go to our website now for more information.