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courtesy of Accuray
CyberKnife is a treatment device used to treat spinal tumors which allows precise targeting of effective doses of radiation while minimizing risk of spinal cord injury. The unit at UPMC Shadyside is one of only six such machines that are actively being used in the United States.
The CyberKnife consists of a lightweight linear accelerator mounted on a robotic arm. The CyberKnife references the position of the treatment target to images of the body; it uses x-rays taken during treatment to establish the position of the lesion and then dynamically brings the radiation beam into alignment with the observed position of the treatment target. The constant adjustment allows the machine to compensate for small movements during treatments. The CyberKnife aims each beam independently, without a fixed focus point. When the target moves, the process detects the change and corrects the beam pointing in near real-time. This allows for maximum precision, which is necessary for spinal surgery.
CyberKnife can be used to treat tumors of the brain, head & neck, lung, spine, abdomen and pelvis. The CyberKnife is also currently available for treatment of lesions throughout
the spine. These lesions may be either benign or malignant including metastases,
meningiomas, neurofibromas, schwannomas, and vascular malformations. The
CyberKnife has been used to successfully treat lesions in patients who
are otherwise not candidates for surgery or for lesions that are not amenable
to open surgical techniques.
Potential candidates for CyberKnife radiosurgery should be referred to Dr. Dwight Heron or Dr. Steven Burton at (412) 623-6720.