What are the side effects of Gamma Knife treatment

Gamma Knife is a common surgical method for treating tumors. It is divided into head Gamma Knife and body Gamma Knife. It can play a very good effect in treating brain tumors and other tumors. Of course, this kind of Gamma Knife treatment will also have some side effects. After all, this treatment method is relatively lethal and will cause certain damage to normal cells. In addition, there are certain radioactive problems, which can easily lead to limb numbness and movement disorders.

Side effects of gamma knife surgery.

1. High lethality, damage to normal tissue cells: Gamma knife uses radioactive therapy, and both normal tissues and cancer cells within the treatment range will be damaged. The larger the radiation range and the longer the irradiation time, the greater the damage to normal tissue.

2. Causes radiation damage and radiation diseases: Gamma knife is a type of radiotherapy, which can cause a series of side effects during or after radiation therapy, such as alopecia areata, nausea and vomiting, fatigue, leukocytopenia, thrombocytopenia and even pancytopenia, decreased immune function, etc. In severe cases, it can also cause radiation diseases, such as radiation myelitis and radiation encephalitis B, which are relatively serious.

3. Causes limb numbness and movement disorders: A small number of patients will experience neurological symptoms such as movement disorders and local numbness within a few weeks or months after radiotherapy.

4. Decreased immune function: Gamma rays can also interfere with and destroy the body's normal immune function, which is undoubtedly a further blow to brain tumor patients.

5. Incomplete treatment and high probability of recurrence: Gamma Knife cannot kill hidden tumors hidden in corners. It cannot completely kill tumor cells and is very likely to recur. Therefore, it is common that tumor cells metastasize and recur within three months after gamma knife treatment. Patients need multiple high-dose radiation therapy sessions during treatment, which has a significant impact on both the patient's physical and mental health.

Scope of application

Gamma Knife is divided into head Gamma Knife and body Gamma Knife. There are two types of gamma knife for head surgery: static gamma knife and rotating gamma knife. The static gamma knife installs multiple cobalt sources in a spherical helmet and focuses them on a certain point inside the skull. The rotating gamma knife is improved on the basis of the static type, has many advantages, and is a Chinese patent.

Gamma Knife radiotherapy on the head can non-invasively cure trigeminal neuralgia (trigeminal neuralgia), glioma, meningioma, acoustic neuroma, pituitary tumor, craniopharyngioma, etc.

Body Gamma Knife is mainly used to treat various tumors throughout the body.

1. Benign intracranial tumors such as acoustic neuroma, pituitary tumor and meningioma less than 30 mm;

2. Small and deep intracranial arteriovenous malformations;

3. Some surgeries cannot completely remove benign tumors;

4. Small intracranial metastatic cancer with clear margins;

5. Functional diseases such as Parkinson's disease, epilepsy, and mental illness.

Gamma Knife is suitable for the treatment of lung cancer, liver cancer, pancreatic cancer, adrenal tumors, kidney cancer, mediastinal tumors, retroperitoneal tumors and pelvic tumors. Body Gamma Knife can be used alone for radical treatment of small tumors or combined with a variety of radiotherapy techniques.

Gamma Knife therapy for the body does not require surgery or anesthesia, is non-traumatic, has mild side effects, and does not require hospitalization. Therefore, it is particularly suitable for the treatment of elderly and frail patients who cannot tolerate surgery or patients who refuse surgery due to fear.