The center is located at Temple Medical Center in New Haven. It focuses 201 beams of concentrated radiation from cobalt-60 sources on tumors and blood vessel malformations and destroys them without a single incision. The gamma knife enables us to destroy tumors in areas of the brain that are inaccessible to the surgeon's scalpel or so close to vital structures, such as the optic nerve, that surgery could irreparably harm normal brain tissue. Depending on the size of the area being treated, the procedure may take as little as 15 minutes or as long as two hours. The helmet has 20 small holes in it that aim the radiation precisely at the abnormal tissue.
Patients often return home the same day and can begin normal activities immediately.
In addition to being able to treat brain lesions, surgeons have been using the gamma knife to treat some kinds of facial pain, cancer pain, epileptic seizures and Parkinson's disease. There are currently about 35 gamma knife units operating nationwide, the closest to New Haven being in New York City and Providence, Rhode Island. It provides us with the necessary space, medical resources and proximity to MRI scanning equipment. Previously, patients who could benefit from the treatment had to be referred outside of Connecticut. All rights reserved.