Gamma knife
On behalf of my husband, has anyone had gamma knife radiation and can tell me side effects? He had the gel injection 2 weeks ago to separate the prostate from the rectum which left him with bowel urgency, hoping the radiation doesn’t make it much worse. He is gleason 6, didn’t want to do the wait and see approach, didn’t want to go for biopsies all the time. He is 70. Thanks for your consideration.
I underwent External Beam Radiation Treatments (EBRT) in 2018 for a Gleason 9. While GammaKnife sounds like a surgical procedure it is basically a more targeted form of external beam radiation. I will say the anticipation of the treatment was worse than the actual procedure which in treatment time only lasts a few minutes. In my situation there were really no side effects other than some discomfort for hemorrhoids which cleared up in a few weeks. Based on my experience and those in my support group I suspect your husband will see few if any issues with treatment. Over time all treatments for prostate cancer can impact sexual performance and may result in some minor leakage issues due to weakened muscles. I hope someone who has undergone gamma knife which has only been around for a few years vs EBRT responds to your inquiry. Dennis(ProstateCancer.net TEAM)
Hi
. Do you mind if I ask if your sure it is Gamma knife that the doctor is proposing, as opposed to Cyberknife? I ask because, while they are both forms of radiation that can be delivered very precisely and thus, in higher doses, allowing for fewer treatments, there are definitive differences. As noted in this article which describes the differences, both are used for brain surgery, but Cyberknife is the one used for stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) throughout the body: https://www.summitcancercenters.com/cyberknife-vs-gamma-knife/.
I can also tell you that my father-in-law had a combination of Cyberknife and traditional radiation (a combination was used because he had a higher Gleason, higher risk cancer). He also had androgen deprivation therapy. It has now been a few years since his treatment and there are no signs of the cancer and he had very few side effects. Wishing you and your husband the best and please feel free to keep us posted on how he is doing. Richard (ProstateCancer.net Team)It’s called Novalis Tx, very similar to Cyberknife and is supposed to be faster. Thank you. He starts tomorrow.
Hi
. Thanks for the update. Yes, the Novalis Tx is faster. It is actually a form of intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT), whereas Cyberknife is a stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT). Want to share with you this study that confirms what you heard about the similarity in results: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35344646/. It notes the Cyberknife was superior to most forms of IBRT and VMAT, but that this was not the case with dynamic IMRT techniques, such as Novalis TX. Wishing your husband and you the best and please feel free, if you like, to keep us posted on how things are going. Richard (ProstateCancer.net Team)
Update
Tomorrow is last day of treatment, side effect is awful diarrhea but no bleeding or issues with urination. He will speak to the doctor about taking Immodium or some such thing for the “runs”.Hi
. Yes, definitely speak to the doctor about what can be done about the diarrhea. It is a good sign that he is not experiencing bleeding or urination issues. Hopefully that helps indicate that he is one of the cases where the diarrhea clears up within a couple of weeks. Wishing both of you the best. Richard (ProstateCancer.net Team)
