For many people, the term CyberKnife is new and one they’re not familiar with. After all, unless you’ve been stricken with cancer and are spending every spare minute researching the internet for treatment options, you may not have had need for this particular treatment method.
On the other hand, almost everyone knows that cancer treatment typically means chemotherapy and radiation therapy – not to mention sides effects such as nausea, vomiting, and losing your hair. Not so with CyberKnife.
Fortunately, technological advances have led to the creation of the CyberKnife system, a noninvasive laser radiation treatment that can painlessly and effectively destroy tumors and cancer cells.
CyberKnife is a fully automated, robotic-delivered treatment that targets only the tumors and cancerous cells, avoiding healthy surrounding tissue. Even if the tumor moves slightly during treatment, as happens naturally when a patient breathes, the CyberKnife system tracks this movement and adjusts its direction so that it is always only targeting the tumor.
Malignant and Benign Tumors, Watch Out!
If you are diagnosed with a tumor that is in a tough or tricky position to reach – such as wrapped around the spinal cord or located deep within the brain – the CyberKnife can most often treat it . Some tumors are located in places that could leave a patient paralyzed if a surgeon were to try to remove it. CyberKnife has the ability to destroy tumors almost any where in the body, without causing damage to healthy areas.
CyberKnife is by far the most advanced radiation delivery system to date. Typically, a person receives low-grade radiation aimed at the whole affected part of the body. The CyberKnife system uses diagnostic imaging to identify the exact dimensions and location of the tumor and aims hundreds of radiation beams directly at the tumor – and only the tumor.
Brain and Spinal Tumors
Some of the worst possible places for a tumor to grow is the brain and the spine, however CyberKnife can often treat them as easily as it does prostate cancer. When treating brain tumors, CyberKnife is so precise there is no need to have a halo bolted or screwed onto the head to keep it still. The CyberKnife system features a movement-tracking system like no other, ensuring even the slightest movement doesn’t result in healthy tissue being exposed to radiation.
The Patient Experience
Patients undergoing CyberKnife treatment also do not require a catheter which is necessary with some other types of radiation treatments.
CyberKnife patients lay back and relax while the robotic arm moves around to target the tumor from every angle. The procedure is painless and requires far fewer treatment sessions than traditional radiation to be effective.
Most insurance companies cover CyberKnife, as does Medicare. So if you’re faced with cancer and want it gone ASAP, consider CyberKnife Radio-surgery. This treatment is the gold standard for effective cancer treatment that is easy, noninvasive, painless and most often symptom-free.
If you or a family member have been diagnosed with any type of a tumor, do not panic. The experts at the CyberKnife Center of Miami have experience treating all sorts of cancers and doing it in a fraction of the time traditional radiation therapy takes. Call the CyberKnife Center of Miami today to learn more (305) 279-2900 or request an appointment now.