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Although stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) has been proven to be effective and safe for treating intracranial meningiomas, concerns have been raised about the use of SRS for large-sized tumors involving the skull base that frequently encroach onto adjacent critical neural structures. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of hypofractionated SRS as a therapeutic option for large-sized skull base meningiomas. Thirty-one consecutive patients (median age: 55 years, 9 men and 22 women) who had been treated with hypofractionated SRS using CyberKnife for large-sized skull base meningiomas (> 10 cm3 in volume, median of 18.9 cm3, range 11.6–58.2 cm3) were enrolled. All patients harbored middle or posterior skull base tumors, most frequently of cavernous sinus (n = 7, 22.6%), petroclival (n = 6, 19.4%), or tentorial edge (n = 6, 19.4%) locations. SRS was delivered in five daily fractions (range 3–5 fractions) with a median cumulative dose of 27.8 Gy (range 22.6–27.8 Gy). With a median follow-up of 57 months (range 9–98 months), tumor control was achieved for 28 (90.3%) of 31 patients. Treatment response on MRI included partial response (volume decrease > 20%) in 17 (54.8%) patients, stable in 11 (35.5%), and progression (volume increase > 20%) in 3 (9.7%). Of 21 patients with cranial neuropathy, 20 (95.2%) showed improved neurological status. Our current results suggest a promising role of hypofractionated SRS for large-sized skull base megningiomas in terms of tumor control and neurological outcomes. It is a reasonable therapeutic option for select patients.

OBJECTIVE We investigated the effect of optimization in dose-limiting shell method on the dosimetric quality of CyberKnife (CK) plans in treating brain metastases (BMs). METHODS We selected 19 BMs previously treated using CK between 2014 and 2015. The original CK plans (CKoriginal) had been produced using 1 to 3 dose-limiting shells : one at the prescription isodose level (PIDL) for dose conformity and the others at lowisodose levels (10-30% of prescription dose) for dose spillage. In each case, a modified CK plan (CKmodified) was generated using 5 dose-limiting shells : one at the PIDL, another at intermediate isodose level (50% of prescription dose) for steeper dose fall-off, and the others at low-isodose levels, with an optimized shell-dilation size based on our experience. A Gamma Knife (GK) plan was also produced using the original contour set. Thus, three data sets of dosimetric parameters were generated and compared. RESULTS There were no differences in the conformity indices among the CKoriginal, CKmodified, and GK plans (mean 1.22, 1.18, and 1.24, respectively; p=0.079) and tumor coverage (mean 99.5%, 99.5%, and 99.4%, respectively; p=0.177), whereas the CKmodified plans produced significantly smaller normal tissue volumes receiving 50% of prescription dose than those produced by the CKoriginal plans (p

Given recently suggested utility of hypofractionated stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) in treating large brain metastases (BMs) > 3 cm, we sought to prospectively control tumor size variable to investigate the efficacy and safety of hypofractionated SRS for medium-sized BMs (2.5 to 3 cm) compared with single-fraction SRS. Between 2011 and 2015, a total of 100 patients with newly diagnosed BMs (n = 105) of 2.5 to 3 cm had been treated with either single-fraction (n = 67; median dose 20 Gy) or hypofractionated SRS (n = 38; median cumulative dose 35 Gy in 5 daily fractions). No patients received any prior or upfront whole brain radiotherapy. In each patient, treatment outcome was measured by local tumor control (LTC), overall and progression-free survival (OS and PFS), and the occurrence of radiation necrosis (RN). With a median follow-up of 14 months, significant differences were observed between the single-fraction versus hypofractionated SRS groups in the incidence of RN (29.9% vs. 5.3%, P

The purpose of our study is to develop a new, 3-dimensional dosimetry system to verify the accuracy of dose deliveries in Leksell Gamma Knife Perfexion (LGKP) (Elekta, Norcross, GA, USA). The instrument consists of a moving head phantom, an embedded thin active layer and a CCD camera system and was designed to be mounted to LGKP. As an active material concentrically located in the hemispheric head phantom, we choose Gafchromic EBT3 films and Gd2O2S:Tb phosphor sheets for dosimetric measurements. Also, to compensate for the lack of backscatter, we located a 1-cm-thick poly methyl methacrylate (PMMA) plate downstream of the active layer. The PMMA plate was transparent to scintillation light to reach the CCD with 1200 × 1200 pixels and a 5.2 µm pitch. With this system, 300 images with a 0.2-mm slice gap were acquired under each of three collimator setups, i.e. 4-mm, 8-mm, and 16-mm, respectively. The 2D projected images taken by the CCD camera were compared with the dose distributions measured by the EBT3 films under the same conditions. All 2D distributions were normalized to the maximum values derived by fitting peaks for each collimator setup. The differences in the full widths at half maximum (FWHM) of 2D profiles between CCD images and film doses were measured to be less than 0.3-mm. The scanning task for all peak regions took less than three minutes with the new instrument. So it can be utilized as a QA tool for the Gamma knife radiosurgery system instead of film dosimetry, the use of which requires much more time and many more resources.

In this study, we compared the dosimetric properties between Gamma Knife (GK) and Cyberknife (CK), and investigated the clinical implications in treating brain metastases (BMs). Between 2011 and 2013, 77 patients treated with either single-fraction GK for small BMs (n = 40) or fractionated CK for large BMs >3 cm (n = 37) were analyzed. Among a total of 160 lesions, 81 were treated with GK (median, 22 Gy) and 38 (large lesions) with three- or five-fraction CK (median, 35 Gy). The median tumor volume was 1.0 cc (IQR, 0.12–4.4 cc) for GK and 17.6 cc (IQR, 12.8–23.7 cc) for fractionated CK. A lesion-to-lesion dosimetric comparison was performed using the identical contour set in both systems. The mean dose to tumor was significantly higher in GK by 1.25-fold (P