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Disadvantages Of Cyberknife For Prostate

Why Use Cyberknife For Prostate Cancer

Robotic Prostate Surgery vs CyberKnife Radiation Therapy

Cyberknife is a good option for prostate cancer because:

  • Treatment is convenient and complete in fewer fractions 5 compared to 44 fractions in traditional radiation.
  • It spares more normal tissue.
  • It is more accurate than traditional radiation.
  • There are fewer side effects.
  • Treatment is performed as an outpatient procedure.

In addition, prostate cancer is a slower-growing tumor. Because prostate cancer cells are growing slowly, they may be more sensitive to higher doses of radiation per fraction than other cancers. This means that delivering radiation in larger doses in fewer treatment sessions may improve outcomes.

What Happens If Prostate Cancer Comes Back

If prostate-specific antigen levels remain high or become elevated after prostate cancer treatment, these are indications of a prostate recurrence. The approach for treating a prostate cancer recurrence varies based on a number of factors including the following.

  • The type of previous cancer treatment received by the patient.
  • The extent and location of the cancer recurrence.
  • The age of the patient and other existing medical conditions.

Patients treated with traditional surgical, radiation and chemotherapy treatments often require follow-up treatment. CyberKnife can be used in conjunction with traditional cancer therapies, as well as immunotherapy and proton therapy, to manage and reduce prostate cancer recurrences.

Prostate cancer recurrence is often emotionally deflating for patients who have already endured treatment and their loved ones. Fortunately, Anova Cancer Cares CyberKnife radiotherapy treatment may be an appropriate therapy option for recurrent cancers, with fewer side effects and less down time.

Learn What to Expect from CyberKnife Treatment

How oncologists diagnose prostate cancer recurrence

After prostate cancer treatment, the amount of PSA in a patients blood typically drops and remains stable. Following treatment, many men receive regular medical checkups that include routine PSA testing. If PSA levels begin to rise, it can be a sign of a prostate cancer recurrence.

Types of prostate cancer recurrence

Likelihood of prostate cancer recurrence

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You can eat various types of other meats. I suggest to eat chicken,turkey,& lots of fish. I buy all natural chicken, all natural turkey,& wild caught & fresh fish.

I eat as much as I want of these type meats. I never thought Id like grounded turkey. I can honestly say that a turkey burger is much better than any hamburger I ever ate. I wouldnt have thought so but it honestly is a better taste & health option.

I eat all the chicken I want. I suggest you to bake it & not fry it in oils. If you do fry then please use Extra Virgin Olive Oil. I add Mrs. Dash seasonings to all my meats. This is an all natural source for seasonings. There are many different flavors by Mrs Dash.

I also eat all the fish I want. I suggest eating salmon,flounder,tilapia,pollack,catfish,trout,& many other fish. Try to eat the oily type fish. Salmon & trout are two of the top oily fish on the market. Here too I suggest baking instead of frying.

Now, I want to move onto another area of the diet. I will be discussing the importance 0f fruits & vegetables. Fruits was definitely a foreign word to me before prostate problems. I did eat limited amounts of veggies but not enough. I made that change as well in my life. Its very important to eat fruits & veggies to have a healthy diet. Disadvantages of Cyberknife for Prostate

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Prostate Cancer: Surgery Vs Radiation Vs Cyberknife

An analysis of more than a dozen studies indicate that prostate cancer patients do better with surgery vs. radiation treatment especially men with localized prostate cancer.

Patients treated with radiation are twice as likely to die from prostate cancer,one a half times likely to die sooner than prostate cancer patients treated with surgery, exposure to radiation may end in secondary cancers such as bladder cancer and rectal cancer.

Dr. David Samadi explores the details.

When men are diagnosed with prostate cancer it can be extremely confusing at times picking the right treatment option as theres a lot of information out there.

Dr David Samadi says that with any cancer, surgery should be the first line of treatment.

With prostate cancer surgery patients get accurate staging i.e. how much cancer a patient has, has the cancer spread to surrounding tissues the PSA levels which has always got to be zero.

He says that patients are led to believe that radiation is a viable first line of treatment if the cancer comes back, it is extremely difficult to perform surgery after radiation.

Dr. Samadi also explain why it is extremely important to weigh in the experience of the surgeon as working with the right doctor would ensure a better and faster recovery.

Dr. David Samadis patients have a continence percentage of 95% 97% regular sexual functionality in about 80% of prostate cancer patients.

Some prostate cancer facts:

Safe And Effective Prostate Cancer Treatment

Metastatic Prostate Cancer Treatment

Not only has the FDA-cleared the CyberKnife System, It has been used successfully to treat conditions throughout the body, including prostate tumors, but it is one of the safest cancer treatment options currently available. Despite its name , it doesnt involve any invasive surgical incisions, so the procedure is pain-free.

Plus, unlike conventional radiation therapy, CyberKnife has minimal if any side effects. Typically, treatments are completed in just one to five sessions as opposed to the numerous treatments over many weeks and months as required with conventional radiation therapy. In addition, there is no recovery time required, so you can immediately return to your normal activities once the treatment session is over.

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Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy

This technique uses advanced image guided techniques to deliver large doses of radiation to a precise area, such as the prostate. Because there are large doses of radiation in each dose, the entire course of treatment is given over just a few days.

SBRT is often known by the names of the machines that deliver the radiation, such as Gamma Knife®, X-Knife®, CyberKnife®, and Clinac®.

The main advantage of SBRT over IMRT is that the treatment takes less time . The side effects, though, are not better. In fact, some research has shown that some side effects might actually be worse with SBRT than with IMRT.

What Happens During The Procedure

Youll be placed in the proper position on a table. Then, a computer-controlled robot will move slowly around the table, targeting radiation where its needed. The software will adjust radiation for your breathing pattern and any movement of the tumor.

This is a noninvasive, painless procedure. Each session will last anywhere from 30 to 90 minutes. Once its over, you should be able to get up and resume your normal activities right away.

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Preparing For Your Cyberknife Treatment

Generally, you will have consultation appointments with both the surgeon and the radiation oncologist. The CyberKnife nurse coordinator will arrange for insurance preauthorizations and inform you of your dates for pretreatment tests. These tests may include blood work and a CT scan, MRI or PET scan.

Men receiving prostate cancer radiation therapy can benefit from this advanced protection for prostate cancer therapy with SpaceOAR hydrogels. We are the only center in Delaware to offer this new technology.

The biodegradable spacers push the rectum away from the prostate and out of the high-dose radiation field to protect rectal cells from injury and thereby improve outcomes. The SpaceOAR gels are injected in a minimally invasive procedure, are safe to use and dissolve after treatment leaving nothing behind.

Can I Get Sbrt For High

Choosing a Treatment for Intermediate Risk Prostate Cancer | Prostate Cancer Staging Guide

Yes, as of 2020, SBRT is considered a standard of care option for patients with high-risk and very-high risk prostate cancer. Dr. Kishan led the largest study of SBRT for high-risk prostate cancer, which was published in early 2021 and pooled data from seven trials from across the world . This study showed extremely favorable outcomes for SBRT for high- and very-high risk prostate cancer in a group of 344 patients.

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Large Study Reveals Long

WASHINGTON A large, national study examining a radiation treatment for prostate cancerpopular because it delivers a high dose of therapy in a very short time framesupports its routine use.

The study, conducted at cancer centers around the United States including at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, looks at long term follow up data for stereotactic body radiotherapy used to treat more than 2,100 men with prostate cancer that had a low or intermediate risk of recurring.

The results were published Feb. 8 in the journal JAMA Network Open.

At MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, the therapy is delivered by a system called CyberKnife, which delivers high doses of radiation precisely aimed to minimize the involvement of healthy surrounding tissue.

Radiation oncologist Sean P. Collins, MD, PhD, says curative treatment is a shared goal along with maintaining a persons quality of life. Side effects, including impotence, can occur with all treatments for prostate cancer and can happen years after treatment.

While it is necessary to observe these men for decades, our interim seven-year data show that survival and side effects are comparable to other forms of radiotherapy, says Collins, director of the CyberKnife Prostate Program at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital and an associate professor of radiation medicine at Georgetown University.

Implications Of Implementing Mrgrt

There are challenges associated with fundamentally changing the workflow and the treatment we deliver. With constant MR imaging and the ability to change the plan daily, there is a risk of over-intervention. For example, if the small bowel sits close to the target on the daily image we may reduce coverage to the PTV in order to keep within our usual reference plan constraints. However, by the time the treatment is delivered the bladder will have filled and the bowel may have lifted, resulting in unnecessary under-dose to the target. We must remember that we have been safely delivering a single plan across a whole treatment course since the inception of fractionated radiotherapy and toxicity rates from prostate external beam radiotherapy are already low.

Replanning daily has significant implications for the workforce. Our current workflow requires two physicists, two radiographers and a clinician to be present for each fraction. Current research is focussed on streamlining this process and stratifying patients into those who do versus those who do not require daily adaptive replanning. We are also investigating the dosimetric impact of radiographer-led contouring. Our early work in an offline environment indicates a high concordance between radiographer and clinician contours .

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Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy

IMRT, an advanced form of 3D-CRT therapy, is the most common type of external beam radiation therapy for prostate cancer. It uses a computer-driven machine that moves around the patient as it delivers radiation. Along with shaping the beams and aiming them at the prostate from several angles, the intensity of the beams can be adjusted to limit the doses of radiation reaching nearby normal tissues. This lets doctors deliver an even higher radiation dose to the cancer.

Some newer radiation machines have imaging scanners built into them. This advance, known as image guided radiation therapy , lets the doctor take pictures of the prostate just before giving the radiation to make minor adjustments in aiming. This appears to help deliver the radiation even more precisely and results in fewer side effects.

A variation of IMRT is called volumetric modulated arc therapy . It uses a machine that delivers radiation quickly as it rotates once around the body. This allows each treatment to be given over just a few minutes. Although this can be more convenient for the patient, it hasnt yet been shown to be more effective than regular IMRT.

Cyberknife Vs Gamma Knife

Metastatic Prostate Cancer Treatment

While there are many comparisons to the Gamma Knife, the CyberKnife System is the only dedicated stereotactic radiosurgery treatment technology that also can be used to deliver stereotactic body radiation therapy for treatments throughout the body.

Both the CyberKnife System and Gamma Knife are used to deliver stereotactic radiosurgery treatments to address tumors, vascular lesions, and functional disorders, such as trigeminal neuralgia or AVM. The treatments are designed to treat inoperable or recurrent brain tumors, and can be used for patients who do not want to endure the risks of surgery. However, there are some crucial differences between Gamma Knife and CyberKnife.

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Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy Delivered By Cyberknife Has Distinct Advantages Over Other Treatments

Having performed more than 1,500 CyberKnife prostate cancer treatments, if I didnt know better I would think that this technology was created specifically to treat this disease. It is completely suited to the specific challenges of prostate cancer treatment. Yet CyberKnife was first used mostly as a treatment for head, neck and spine tumors that were very difficult to reach.

The Food and Drug Administration opened the door in 2001 to the use of CyberKnife to treat other cancers in the body. Since then urologists and oncologists are turning more and more to CyberKnife, as are patients.

CyberKnifes primary advantages relate to reduced damage to healthy tissue surrounding the cancerous prostate tissues. This is largely due to CyberKnifes ability to precisely target a tumor in the prostate without radiating healthy tissue. Damaging healthy tissue is the leading cause of side effects from radiation treatment.

What Does Treatment Feel Like And How Long Does It Take

Treatment is painless. You will not feel anything as the radiation is delivered. You may hear and see the CyberKnife machine moving and setting up for the next position in treatment. Relaxing is the best thing you can do, while lying still. You can bring a CD of relaxing music to listen to during your treatment.

Time of treatment will vary, depending on the area being treated. Each stage or fraction, typically lasts one hour. You may need only one fraction, while others require up to 5 fractions for most effective treatment. Your doctor will tell you how long the treatment will take.

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Are There Cyberknife Patient Organizations I Can Contact For More Information

The CyberKnife Patient Support Group, is a non-profit organization established in July 2001 and dedicated to helping others by sharing the personal experiences of patients who have undergone CyberKnife procedure. Note that the group has moved to a new home that has been redesigned and updated with new information and functionality. All of the old posts are also available in the new Patient Forum under Archived Posts. Please visit to see whats new!

What Is Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy And What Advantages Does It Offer

Focal Therapy for Prostate Cancer | Prostate Cancer Staging Guide

Traditionally, we deliver external beam radiation in 45 to 48 sessions over a span of ten weeks, using very sophisticated computer-based planning and enhanced imaging techniques and tumor tracking during the treatment. This is called image-guided IMRT and it is the current standard of care.

But there is increasing interest in giving this radiation in shorter courses of treatment. Many of the people we care for have a type of radiation therapy called MSK PreciseTM. MSK Precise is a form of SBRT that can be given in five sessions instead of the usual 45 to 50. MSK has been doing this for the past nine years, and the results in the several hundred people whove been treated have been excellent so far. The treatment is very well tolerated, with outcomes that are at least equivalent to and possibly better than the standard ten weeks of treatment. Because of its superior precision, MSK Precise has less side effects than more conventional radiation techniques, with extremely low rates of incontinence and rectal problems. The sexual side effects are low and similar to what is experienced with conventional external radiation techniques. And of course, its much more convenient for patients.

For patients with more-advanced tumors, we are completing a phase II trial in which were combining sophisticated brachytherapy approaches with MSK Precise. This kind of combination of dose-intense or escalated radiation may end up being a very effective regimen.

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Sbrt Limits The Field Of Radiation

CyberKnife is a form of stereotactic body radiation therapy , which is a coordinated system to exactly locate the tumor and limit the field of radiation treatment. SBRT delivers a single high dose of radiation or a few fractionized radiation treatments.

There are various types of SBRT, and I believe CyberKnife is the best. CyberKnife utilizes a robotic arm to deliver radiation in different ways and at different angles.

Ever try to slice a grape? It almost seems to squiggle away from the blade, and can result in a poor cut or even a smashed grape. But if you hold that grape against the cutting board between two fingers so it doesnt move, you can slice it precisely the way you want.

The tumor under prostate cancer treatment acts much like the grape: It squiggles away. Thats because the prostate moves unpredictably, caused by air passing through the rectum and by the filling and emptying movements of the bladder, not to mention the patient sneezing or just breathing.

The CyberKnife Robotic Surgery System blends robotics, computer-processing power, advanced imaging and the surgeons skill to make instantaneous corrections in radiation delivery. This is possible despite any movement of the patient or the prostate cancer tumor being targeted.

Where Could Mrgrt Take Us In Prostate Cancer

MRgRT is currently more resource intensive to deliver compared with standard radiotherapy. In an arena where there are multiple effective ways to irradiate a prostate , MRgRT will have to prove its worth. Hence research is needed to both prove the added value of this technology in prostate cancer and to streamline processes to reduce treatment times and workforce requirements.

At the most practical level, the ability to dispense with CT, and have a MR-only workflow to produce a complete plan, from contouring to checking, in minutes, paves the way for a paradigm shift in our departmental structures. Patients could be scanned, contoured and planned, all while waiting on the bed. With session times of around 45min at present, and scope to reduce this, a streamlined workflow could eliminate patient waits for planning and protracted radiotherapy planning pathways.

The ultimate question asks whether we can reduce fraction number below five, even to a single treatment? This has been done by several groups with HDR brachytherapy, mostly treating to 19 or 20Gy , , although recent reports have shown disappointing biochemical control rates . Early clinical testing is in process to establish whether similar doses can be given with external beam radiotherapy . However, the more accurate IGRT, intra-beam monitoring and the ability to rapidly produce a plan corresponding to the anatomy of the moment, would make MRgRT the optimal way to test this.

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