From OHC
May 8, 2018
David Pratt, MD
Radiation Oncologist with OHC
Kathleen and her friend were headed out on one of their typical shopping adventures. She was feeling good because she’d just received word from her eye doctor that the little growth on her eyelid was not vision related. However, her friend was not feeling so good. In fact, she was terrified at Kathleen’s driving.
“Nothing seemed different to me, but apparently I was all over the road,” said Kathleen. “And I had noticed days before that my handwriting was different. It wasn’t as neat as usual. I started to think maybe that thing on my eye was something serious after all.”
After almost falling into the bathtub and then the shower, Kathleen went to the emergency room. That’s when she learned it was a tumor in her brain.
“When I first heard ‘cancer’ everything kind of stopped and I thought ‘Well, this is it,’” explained Kathleen. “I decided I wasn’t going to have surgery because I’ve always believed that once you have cancer and you do surgery, it makes it spread.”
Fortunately, Kathleen’s medical oncologist, Dr. Pat Ward, talked with her about Gamma Knife. Kathleen decided since Gamma Knife isn’t surgery, she’d give it a chance.
In the past, surgeons would remove most of the tumor, but not all because that could involve removing or affecting a small part of the brain. The technology with gamma knife allows doctors to deliver radiation to a brain tumor to destroy the tumor cells while causing little or no radiation damage to the surrounding normal tissue. Ironically, gamma knife isn’t a knife and involves no cutting. It involves precision and radiation.
“With Gamma Knife, we use a highly precise delivery of radiation to a brain tumor that destroys the tumor cells while causing little or no radiation damage to the surrounding normal tissue,” said David Pratt, MD, radiation oncologist with OHC who performs the Gamma Knife procedure. “It doesn’t require an incision so there are none of the risks associated with surgery and anesthesia. It requires only one treatment, and that usually takes less than an hour depending on the individual case.”
“I felt better immediately after the Gamma Knife procedure! I couldn’t believe it. It was immediate!” explained Kathleen. “Before, I felt uncoordinated, disoriented and my handwriting was bad. Then, when I woke up, and my mind was clear, my handwriting was normal, and I was able to take my dog, Jack, for walks again. My sister even noticed. It was amazing.”
“I didn’t think I’d be here a year after my diagnosis,” said Kathleen. “I am so happy to be alive! I’m enjoying life, and am closer with my family and friends. I’m glad I didn’t give up.”
And now Gamma Knife is available “frameless.” This means patients get the same treatment without having to wear the “frame” on their head. And OHC is proud to offer this more comfortable option to our patients. To learn more about Gamma Knife, call OHC at 1-800-710-4674 or click Contact Us.
