Brain Surgery-GK

The Gamma Knife is truly “surgery without an incision.” The Gamma Knife can provide significant benefits to patients without the risks of more traditional neurosurgery. While at the University of Pittsburgh, Dr. Thompson completed a Fellowship in Gamma Knife Radiosurgery.

The Gamma Knife is used to treat four types of problems; brain tumors, vascular malformations, movement disorders, and trigeminal neuralgia. Brain tumors including meningiomas, acoustic neuromas, gliomas, and metastatic brain tumors may be treated with the Gamma Knife. Vascular malformations such as AVMs (arteriovenous malformations) have also been successfully treated with the Gamma Knife. The movement disorders that are treated with the Gamma Knife include Parkinson’s disease and tremor disorders. Finally, trigeminal neuralgia may be treated with the Gamma Knife.

Radiosurgery is a “patient friendly” procedure that does not require invasive surgery. It allows the patient to go home the same day. The Gamma Knife is a unique device that utilizes 201 beams of Cobalt radiation to deliver a focused dose of radiation to a target within the brain while minimizing risk to the surrounding brain. The design of the Gamma Knife allows small areas in the brain to be treated with high doses of radiation. The precisely targeted radiation of the Gamma Knife prevents brain outside of the target area from receiving significant doses of radiation.

The number of patients treated with the Gamma Knife has grown significantly since its innovation in 1967. Currently there are more than 51 Gamma Knife units in the United States and 126 units worldwide. Gamma Knife radiosurgery is performed by a team that includes the neurosurgeon, a radiation oncologist, a medical physicist, and a nurse. Over 100,000 patients have been treated with the Gamma Knife.