Comparing treatment options

Fighting cancer is personal; therefore, treating cancer must be personalized. What is a good approach for one person may not be the best approach for another person - even if they both have the same type of cancer.

Your treatment may include traditional or minimally-invasive surgery, cancer-fighting medications (chemotherapy), and/or radiation therapy. You and your doctor will evaluate various options and determine the best treatment plan for you. Your plan may include multiple types of treatment in a specific sequence.

CyberKnife - the world's first and only robotic-assisted radiosurgery - is a relatively new approach to radiation therapy. CyberKnife is a non-surgical treatment that uses 3-D imagery and pin-point accuracy to aim multiple radiation beams on a specific location inside the body in order to destroy a tumor. CyberKnife can treat tumors that cannot be treated by surgery or other radiation therapies, and those that cannot be treated without damaging surrounding tissue and structures. CyberKnife might be an option for patients who would like to avoid surgery.

Comparing CyberKnife treatment and surgery

CyberKnife benefits

CyberKnife offers multiple benefits to patients requiring radiation therapy.

• CyberKnife can treat small or complex, cancerous and non-cancerous tumors anywhere in the body
• CyberKnife can treat tumors that cannot be removed surgically
• CyberKnife's precision and accuracy preserves healthy tissue surrounding the tumor
• CyberKnife sounds like surgery, but isn't - no scalpels, no incisions, no anesthesia
• No hospital stay - Outpatient treatment only takes 30-90 minutes
• No hospital gown - patients wear their street clothes while being treated
• No metal frame to limit movement during treatment
• No risk of infection
• No pain
• No recovery time at home - patients typically resume normal daily activities immediately after treatment
• Few, if any, side effects

Radiation Therapy

Surgery

Chemotherapy