CyberKnife® is unique in that it uses a linear accelerator mounted to a flexible jointed robotic arm to provide up to 1,200 different angles for physicians to reach a variety of tumors both benign and malignant. Surgeons synchronize CyberKnife® with patient movements, including breathing, to allow pinpoint radiation treatment even on moving tumors.

The extreme accuracy of the CyberKnife® is unsurpassed, lending it the ability to deliver high precision radiation to the tumor while avoiding the healthy tissue surrounding the tumor. The addition of the CyberKnife® Radiosurgery Center, located in the Mercy Medical Plaza, offers tumor patients new treatment options that were not possible in the past. Initial uses have been for brain and spinal tumors, but CyberKnife® can treat tumors anywhere in the body.

“Radiosurgery is by definition predicated on accuracy. The CyberKnife® is capable of sub-millimeter accuracy. Better accuracy means a lower dose of radiation to nearby healthy tissue, and this means fewer side-effects for the patient,” said Richard Deming, M.D., medical director for the CyberKnife® Radiosurgery Center of Iowa.