One Thousandth Patient Receives Gamma Knife Treatment

In late December, a 72-year-old woman suffering from multiple brain tumors became the 1,000th patient to undergo Gamma Knife radiosurgery at Memorial Hermann Hospital. The patient was fitted with a temporary metal stereotactic frame. Once an MRI scan pinpointed where her tumors were in relation to the frame, gamma radiation was precisely targeted to destroy the cancerous tissue. The frame was removed after treatment and the patient went home the same day.

Brain surgery without a knife is a concept that reads like science fiction fantasy. To the Gamma Knife radiosurgery team of neurosurgeons, radiation oncologists and registered nurses at Memorial Hermann Hospital, it merely seemed like a routine procedure they had performed a thousand times. In fact, they had.

This patient was a landmark that Geoffrey Swaby, director of outpatient diagnostic and procedural services at Memorial Hermann, thought might never be reached.

"Our original Gamma Knife, installed in 1993, was destroyed by Tropical Storm Allison," said Swaby. "Fortunately, we had a brand new Gamma Knife installed in early November. Not only has the Gamma Knife program fully recovered from Tropical Storm Allison, but because the cobalt is newer, procedures are faster."

One of only five in the state, this treatment is available in the Houston area only at Memorial Hermann, in cooperation with the department of neurosurgery at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston. The technique uses sophisticated computer technology to precisely direct gamma rays from radioactive cobalt onto tumors, blood vessel abnormalities or problematic nerves causing trigeminal neuralgia. The Gamma Knife treats the diseased area without damaging surrounding healthy tissue.

"Although it’s been available to us for a few years, this is a relatively revolutionary treatment in neurosurgery," said Dr. William Gormley, medical director of Memorial Hermann’s Gamma Knife radiosurgery department. "This procedure is effective, safe, quick, and best of all, painless. The cost of this procedure, including professional fees, is usually up to 50 percent lower than conventional brain surgery."

Dr. Gormley said treatment is completed within a day and patients are normally able to resume their usual lifestyle the next day. Patients do not have their heads shaved for radiosurgery, and adults usually do not require general anesthesia. It is now established that Gamma Knife radiosurgery gives results comparable to those obtained with microsurgery, he said.

"Clearly, it is an especially valuable approach for patients whose tumors or blood vessel abnormalities are situated in critically located brain regions," Dr. Gormley said. "It is also beneficial for patients whose advanced age or medical condition places them at an unacceptably high risk for anesthesia and conventional surgery."

"Memorial Hermann Hospital is among few elite facilities in the nation and the second in Texas to provide this treatment to hundreds, now thousands of patients," Swaby said.

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©2006 Texas Medical Center

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