Gamma Knife is suitable for the treatment of brain tumors, cerebrovascular malformations, trigeminal neuralgia, and epilepsy. Their efficacy is all very certain, and all can be controlled or cured. The efficacy response varies from disease to disease, and there are major differences in the speed and duration of disappearance of lesions.
These can be clearly determined before treatment: 1. Brain metastases are a manifestation of advanced cancer and a major cause of cancer death. Brain metastases, if not treated the natural survival period is very short, an average of 3 months, if you choose head gamma knife treatment, it can be greatly extended, even if the tumor metastasized again, as long as the choice of head gamma knife, the patient will not cause death because of brain metastases. Therefore, head gamma knife has become the “death penalty” for brain metastases. Head gamma knife brain metastases control rate of more than 95%, regardless of the size, nature, location, number of tumors and other factors, should be preferred to head gamma knife.
2, auditory neuroma is a benign tumor, is curable. At the beginning, patients with auditory nerve only have tinnitus and hearing loss, but at the later stage, the tumor develops and compresses the nerve, which will lead to limb paralysis, headache and intracranial hypertension. Craniotomy and Gamma Knife treatment can be chosen after clear diagnosis. Since craniotomy cannot preserve hearing and there is a high risk of facial paralysis and hemiparesis, gamma knife is preferred for patients with mild symptoms and small tumors (<3cm in diameter). Gamma knife controls the tumor with an efficiency of more than 90%, very little facial paralysis, and may also preserve hearing. Tumors begin to shrink six months after treatment and disappear in 2-3 years. Patients with large tumors (>3cm in diameter) or with hydrocephalus are best treated with surgical decompression or current shunt surgery. If the patient’s other conditions do not allow surgery, gamma knife can also be chosen.
3, pituitary adenoma is a benign tumor, manifesting headache, vision loss, endocrine abnormalities. There are “gigantism”, “acromegaly”, “Cushing’s disease”, amenorrhea, lactation, sexual dysfunction, hyperthyroidism, etc.. Treatment options include drugs, surgery and gamma knife. Most patients can prefer gamma knife treatment. The efficacy of Gamma Knife is very certain, with an efficiency of 85% or more. After half a year, the tumor begins to shrink, hormones gradually recover, and is cured within 1-2 years, and Gamma Knife treatment rarely affects pituitary function. For tumor invasion of peripheral blood vessels, surgical resection of patients with difficulties, more should choose gamma knife.
4, brain arteriovenous malformation, gamma knife can make the brain arteriovenous malformation of capillary endothelial hyperplasia, and eventually occlusion cure. The efficacy is very sure and stable, the occlusion rate is about 30-50% in the first year, about 70-85% in the second year, and will increase to more than 90% in the third year. It is very safe, the normal blood vessels are not damaged, and the complications are few and mild, which cannot be compared with “craniotomy” or “endovascular embolization”. After treatment, edema rarely occurs and can be controlled.
Although meningioma grows slowly, it is an accelerated growth, and should be treated promptly after discovery. Patients without symptoms, in order to avoid craniotomy, should be early gamma knife treatment. The control rate of gamma knife treatment for meningioma is over 85%, and it will gradually shrink or disappear after 1-2 years. For tumors that are difficult to operate or remain after surgery, it is even more important to treat them with gamma knife to prevent growth and recurrence. Skull base meningioma is large in size, dangerous surgery, total excision is difficult, you can also choose the head gamma knife dose splitting treatment.
6, glioma is the most common primary malignant tumor in the skull, poor efficacy, easy recurrence, difficult to cure. However, gamma knife can control the tumor, so that the tumor shrinks and disappears. If the tumor is found early and the volume is small, gamma knife is preferred to delay the disease and maintain the existing quality of life; when the tumor develops late and the volume is large, craniotomy should be performed to prolong life. For benign, low-grade astrocytoma, the volume is often large, take the gamma knife “dose splitting treatment” will have very satisfactory results.
7, craniopharyngioma: Most often seen in children, although benign, but the effect is unstable, easy to recur, easy to cause developmental disorders and double blindness. The treatment includes craniotomy, directional intraperitoneal radiotherapy, gamma knife and so on. Comprehensive treatment should be adopted. Gamma knife can control the substantial tumor and reduce the recurrence of cystic change.
8, the pineal region tumor, due to the location of deep, malignant accounted for the majority, including germ cell tumor is extremely sensitive to radiotherapy. In the absence of gamma knife before, often take a small dose of radiotherapy, if the tumor shrinks quickly, continue to put the amount to the limit of the amount. However, if the treatment is not effective (non-germ cell tumors) is very difficult. Currently, there is a greater tendency to direct gamma knife dose fractionation treatment, regardless of the nature of the tumor can be better controlled, if the tumor disappears in a short period of time (about 1 month), germ cell tumor is likely, it is recommended to supplement external radiotherapy to prevent recurrence. For patients with hydrocephalus, they can also be treated with Gamma Knife first, and the hydrocephalus will disappear on its own after the tumor shrinks, and the shunt surgery can be dispensed with. Other brain tumors suitable for gamma knife treatment include chordoma, lymphoma, nerve sheath tumor (neurofibroma), sea surface hemangioma, and so on.