Gamma knife

Hello Everyone.

I was looking up some reseaerch on gamma knife on the internet and was just curious as to how many treatments anyone had received.... and the amount of time they had to wait before/if they were told their avm was gone... thanks for the responses. God Bless.

Hey Jessica! There are many blog and forum postings where people have shared info about their experience with GK. If you don’t get a lot of responses here, be sure to search those places. Also if you search under the member tab, you will find links to individuals pages who have gone through GK. Many times they have great info in their story area.
Good luck on your fact finding mission :slight_smile:

Hi Jessica-I can give you my daughter’s experience with Gamma Knife but of course, keep in mind that everyone’s case is different depending on the location, size, and age of patient. My daughter was 6 when she bled and was diagnosed with her AVM. She had 1 embolization and then 6 months later had her 1st round of Gamma. We were told it should take up to 4 yrs to close off the AVM. We waited 41/2 yrs with MRI’s every 6 months. They scheduled a angiogram and possibly another Gamma to ‘finish off’ the AVM but after the angiogram, they found the original area of AVM was gone but a new area had formed. Please keep in mind she was 6 when she bled and now is 13. Her body is still growing and changing. At that time, they were only able to radiate 1/2 of the new growth. She was then scheduled a year later for another radiosurgery but this time they used the Linear Accelerator (LINAC) That was May of 09. She had her 1 yr MRI tonight and we go for the result at the neurosurgeon next Tuesday April 6th. A craniotomy is not an option in her case, so we are grateful to have this option. She is now on seizure medicine as she has had 3 grand mals since the 3rd treatment last May but feel they are under control now. Hope this helps and doesn’t get you frustrated. Everybody has a different story and I pray yours is a good one!

My cereberal AVM is in the inter left portion of my brain. It was discorverid on February 14th and the gamma knife was performed on April 16th. It took 2 years for completion. I had two MRI’s, one each year to be sure that the gamma knife was working. I still have migrains, partial seizures and am on anti-seizure medication. I also have cancer (CLL). This complicates things. The CLL is not curable. It is a life time issue. I get checked every six months. Remember each person is different and each case is different. Talk with your doctors and make your our mind up as to what you are going to do. Gamma knife saved my life and I was able to raise my children. With GODs blessings and the doctors knowledge and know how I am here today. GOD bless.