cyber knife aka SBRT

[dunnellon]

I am wondering if any one has experience with SBRT/Cyber Knife treatment. I get another PET on 9/1. First one was 3 mo. ago to look at a meningioma in my spine and lit up a 1.7cm tumor on my upper right lung lobe. I had the meningioma removed 7 weeks ago and now the thoracic surgeon wants a new PET and a pulmonary function test. I'd really like to avoid surgery if possible. Cyber Knife treatment sounds like a great alternative. Any experiences? Opinions? After the spinal surgery I am afraid to jump into another world of pain.

[2greys]

Hi dunnellon.

Also known as SABR. (Cyber Knife is just the name of a Linear Accelerator machine by the manufacturer). I have had SABR treatment, concluding in the beginning of May 2016. My 28 mm tumour in the upper left lobe was done in 5 doses (called fractions). None invasive, no pain and other than some slight radiation induced inflammation I had no side effects. The hardest part of was lying motionless on the hard table. There is research that says it is as effective as surgery, perhaps even better with today's technology. It has, so far been successful and the tumour is still shrinking today, in remission. In my opinion it really is a miracle treatment as opposed to surgery. You will really need to discuss this with your Oncologist/Consultant though, not just take my word for it.

Unfortunately a 3 year old large nodule, in my upper right lobe has recently started growing and become suspicious. If it has turned malignant then I will definitely be electing SABR radiotherapy again.

Being honest, I will say that although although surgery was previously offered, it had a huge risk of mortality, because of other health reasons, which obviously I declined in favour of radiotherapy. If you need further info then of course just ask. Although I am in the UK I think that the treatment will be more or less the same.

[dunnellon in reply to 2greys]

Thanks so much for your reply. So glad to hear of your success! I see an oncology team a week after the PET. The surgeon I was given at the teaching hospital said I don't need a face-to-face with an oncologist unless I'm prescribed meds. I made an appt with one anyway to explore my options. I'm sure this surgeon will want to cut me.

[2greys in reply to dunnellon]

I think all surgeons are in that opinion, so was the one that I saw, despite giving odds of 60% that I would die on the table. But please do get your all your options advised first. Just because it was right for me does not mean it will be the best option for you too. All I have done is give you an opinion from my own perspective on SABR or if you prefer SBRT as it is known in the USA. Good luck to you however you decide to choose.

[dunnellon in reply to 2greys]

Yes, I'm determined to have all my options known and I appreciate your caveat. One of my concerns is that if I prefer SABR and it's a viable treatment and my surgeon doesn't agree, does that mean I don't have the last say in my treatment. I feel like a mouse in a maze in the dark.

[2greys in reply to dunnellon]

Your health system is different than in the UK, but that does not negate that it is your body so it should be ultimately your choice.

[dunnellon in reply to 2greys]

I feel I'm going to be railroaded. I hope I'm wrong. Thank you for helping me fortify my resolves. I appreciate it.

[2greys in reply to dunnellon]

Mention your concerns to your Oncology team. Anecdotally, it seems surgeons tend to feel they are a breed apart with god like virtues. Do not be intimidated by them. Below I have put a couple of studies for you regarding radiotherapy vs surgery with lung cancer the first from 2014 the second from 2018 that may add weight to your argument for having SBRT/SABR treatment over surgery.

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"One of the questions with stereotactic radiation has centered on cancer recurrence rates. A 2014 study compared 458 patients who underwent lung cancer surgery with 151 patients treated with SBRT. Overall local recurrence for the surgical group was 2.6 percent and 10.7 percent for the SBRT cohort. At three years, local recurrence-free survival was 90 percent for SBRT versus 92 percent for surgery."

itnonline.com/article/surge...

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"The study analyzed cases from the National Cancer Database (NCDB) and included 76,623 patients treated with surgery and 8,216 treated with focused radiation. The analysis showed low rates of post-treatment mortality overall – 2.1 percent of patients receiving surgery passed away within 30 days of treatment, compared with 0.7 percent of patients treated with focused radiation. However, the difference in post-treatment mortality between these two treatments widened with age. Among patients older than 80 years, 3.9 percent receiving surgery passed away within this 30-day post-treatment window, compared with 0.9 percent of patients receiving focused radiation."

coloradocancerblogs.org/tre...

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[dunnellon in reply to 2greys]

Thanks so much! I printed out the latest study. Tomorrow I have a PET. The last one was 3 months ago so I should have a better idea of where I stand. I had a needle biopsy in June, but it came back 'inconclusive, suspicious'.

[2greys in reply to dunnellon]

Wishing the very best of luck for you, from across the pond to you.

[dunnellon in reply to 2greys]

Thank you so much! I think I could fly across the pond with all the butterflies in my belly!😬