Once our treating physicians and the patient decide to have Gamma Knife Perfexion treatment, the patient will come to the Robert R. Gamma Knife Center at Central Mississippi Medical Center and check in with our staff. The patient will be asked to sign a consent form that grants us permission to perform the procedure.

Gamma Knife Perfexion treatment consists of the following steps:

1. PLACEMENT OF THE HEAD FRAME  A stereotactic frame will be placed on the patient’s head and remain there throughout treatment. The frame is needed as a reference point during treatment planning, and it is used to hold the head in the exact position required for precise treatment.  This frame provides the Gamma Knife with an unmatched level of accuracy to perform the treatment procedure.

2. OBTAINING PRECISE IMAGES   MRI, CT scans or angiography (a way to visualize the blood vessels) will be used to obtain images that clearly define where the tumor, AVM or treatment site is located. A typical Gamma Knife treatment plan takes an hour or two to complete.

3. TREATMENT PLANNING   Once the images are transferred to the Gamma Knife's computer planning system, the team will examine them and accurately define the target. The detailed treatment plan they create will determine how long treatment will take. Planning a typical Gamma Knife treatment usually takes approximately one hour.

4. TREATMENT   Once the treatment plan has been carefully checked by the team for precision and safety and has been explained to the patient, treatment will begin. The patient will enter the Gamma Knife room and recline on the couch portion of the unit. The team will position the patient’s head in the machine. The team conducts treatment in an adjacent room, maintaining contact with the patient through video and intercom. Patients may choose to listen to the radio or music of their choice. When the treatment is over, the patient is taken out of the machine and the head frame is removed.  Most patients will be observed for a period of time and are released.  However, some patient may be required to stay overnight in the hospital.  Most individuals return to normal pre-treatment activities within a day or two.

5. POST GAMMA KNIFE TREATMENT   A physician will monitor the patient’s treatment results by taking periodic MRI, CT scans or angiography. The Robert R. Smith, M.D. Gamma Knife Center staff will stay in contact with  the patient’s physician in order to monitor the treatment progress. We are available 24 hours a day to provide further consultation on a patient case.

For more information on what to expect, see the FAQS.

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