CyberKnife Specialist
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Brain and Spine Institute of New York and New Jersey
Board-Certified Neurosurgeon located in East Brunswick, NJ, Bayonne, NJ, Midtown, New York, NY, & Bayside, NY
When you need spinal radiosurgery, trust Arien Smith, MD, FACS, at Brain and Spine Institute of New York and New Jersey. He uses CyberKnife®, an innovative technology that destroys tumors or lesions with precision and accuracy. For more about the advanced CyberKnife technology offered, call any of their New Jersey offices in East Brunswick or Bayonne, or their New York City offices in or Bayside, Queens, and Midtown East, Manhattan. You can also schedule an appointment online today.
CyberKnife
What is CyberKnife?
CyberKnife is a revolutionary form of radiosurgery. Radiosurgery uses accurate, targeted radiation to destroy tumors and lesions. With radiosurgery, healthy tissue surrounding the treated tumor or lesion is minimally affected by the radiation.
CyberKnife’s breakthrough technology provides rapid relief from pain and dysfunction associated with spinal tumors. This non-invasive, painless treatment delivers radiation to destroy tumors or lesions in the body — particularly the spine.
CyberKnife uses a robotic arm that sends high doses of radiation to precisely targeted areas in your spine. The robotic arm is flexible so it can be used to treat the spine and spinal cord, which were once unable to efficiently undergo radiosurgery techniques. CyberKnife is FDA approved.
Who is a candidate for CyberKnife?
Benign and malignant (cancerous) tumors can develop in the nerves, bones, and other tissues that are part of the spinal column and spinal cord. Most types of tumors can be treated with CyberKnife.
This includes benign tumors, slow-growing cancerous tumors, and aggressive, fast-growing tumors. Often, these spinal tumors are metastatic, meaning they developed due to cancer that began in another part of the body.
If your spinal tumor or lesion is deemed inoperable with open surgery or conventional radiation surgery, CyberKnife offers a solution.
How does CyberKnife work?
During a CyberKnife session, you lie on a treatment table and the robotic arm moves to the areas where the tumor is present. The robotic arm moves without touching your skin to treat all areas of the tumor.
It detects the areas that need treatment using real-time X-rays. There is no anesthesia necessary.
Treatment is done on an outpatient basis, meaning you go home the same day. A session lasts 30-90 minutes, and the number of sessions you’ll need depends on the size of your tumor, its location, and its shape. Usually, patients benefit from up to five CyberKnife sessions scheduled daily.
Side effects are minimal and you can usually return to normal activities the same day.
To learn more about the revolutionary treatment therapy provided by CyberKnife, contact Brain and Spine Institute of New York and New Jersey by phone or online today.