A Typical CyberKnife® Treatment
The following is a typical procedure at the European CyberKnife Centre in Munich
Step 1: Treatment Setup
Making a Mask. A custom soft mask (for head/neck treatments) is formed and used to help minimize movements during the treatment and ensure your comfort. The process is simple and painless.
Step 2: Treatment Planning
The CT data is downloaded to the treatment-planning computer, where physicians will use advanced software to customise the number, intensity and direction of radiation beams for the robot to send to the target. You do not need to be present during this step.
Imaging. A CT-scan is performed. Your surgeon and radiation oncologist use the scan to identify the exact size, shape and location of the tumour along with the surrounding vital structures to be avoided.
Step 3: Treatment Delivery
Arriving. Wear comfortable clothing and no jewellery. Try to relax, knowing that this will be a painless procedure. Feel free to bring a list of questions to ask the CyberKnife team. They are there to ensure your comfort and safety.
Positioning. You will be asked to lie on the treatment table and be fitted with the custom mask or body mould made earlier during the set-up process. Generally, no sedation or anaesthesia is required because the treatment is painless.
Painless Treatment. During treatment you will need to lie still. You will be awake throughout the entire procedure, which typically lasts 30-90 minutes depending on the complexity of your tumour.
Completion. If you are undergoing single-session radiosurgery treatment, your treatment is complete and you can usually leave the hospital and resume normal activity immediately. If your physician prescribes a “hypo-fractionated” or staged treatment, this will be spread over a few consecutive days.
Follow-up. As with any radiosurgery or radiation therapy, follow-up imaging and consultation is required to monitor progress, ideally on a six-monthly basis. This may require a return to the CyberKnife centre but it is usually sufficient to send MRI control scans and neurological follow up results on a CD or to discuss these with you local Consultant.
Fiducial Placement. CyberKnife treatments for body lesions may require a short outpatient procedure to implant several small metal markers (fiducials) near the tumour, in order to track its position throughout the treatment. Additional software however enables the CyberKnife to use the body's own bone structure to provide markers when treating the brain or spine, so it is posible to treat these areas without implanting fiducials.
The image guidance system periodically takes x-ray images and compares them to data from the CT scan to ensure that the radiation is targeted accurately to the tumour.
Treatment enquiries
To enquire about treatment at a choice of CyberKnife centres visit the CyberKnife Patients page.
CyberKnife Radiosurgery CyberKnife Treatments Brain and Spine Soft Tissue Tumours CyberKnife Patients
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