Liver Lesions
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The CyberKnife® Radiosurgery Solution
Liver Metastases
Stereotactic radiotherapy/radiosurgery allows a substantial radiation dose escalation to liver metastases, translating to a radiation biologic potency greater than double that of conventional radiation therapy approaches (22,23). This brings a new nonsurgical liver tumor ablation method that is more precise and powerful than traditional radiotherapy, and less invasive than surgical removal, radiofrequency ablation (heating) or cryosurgery (freezing).
The unique CyberKnife® dose sculpting and target tracking attributes (Synchrony™) make it a particularly attractive option for the treatment of liver metastatic lesions. As the only radiation delivery system that tracks respiratory tumor movement with 1.5 mm accuracy, the CyberKnife® is uniquely capable of delivering an ablative radiation dose to liver metastases, with the sharpest margin possible, allowing the maximum possible sparing of adjacent normal liver tissue and nearby upper gastrointestinal organs.
The efficacy of CyberKnife® radiosurgery relative to metastatic resection or other ablative approaches such as cryosurgery or radiofrequency ablation is appropriately studied in prospective comparative clinical trials. Meanwhile, it is reasonably applied to patients with liver metastases who are not surgical candidates, or to those who refuse surgery or other invasive treatment methods.
Liver Metastases dose sculpting with CyberKnife®. Image adapted from: "Robotic Radiosurgery" - First Edition
Written by Donald B. Fuller, M.D. – Radiation Oncologist