Welcome to
Gamma Knife
South Africa
Your treatment journey: what to expect on the day of your Gamma Knife surgery.
Exclusively for the brain
At Gamma Knife South Africa, our leading multi-disciplinary team work together to treat patients with malignant and benign brain tumours, functional disorders and vascular abnormalities in the brain using Gamma Knife stereotactic radiosurgery.
Since the launch of our Gamma Knife unit in 2017, over 1,000 patients have been treated. Internationally, some one million patients have benefited from Gamma Knife radiosurgery.
Specialists across South Africa refer their patients to us. Patients from across the African continent travel to undergo treatment at our world class unit.
Gamma Knife: Ask for it by name
Why choose Gamma Knife?
01.
Proven alternative
Gamma Knife treatment, contrary to what its name suggests, is not traditional radiosurgery. It is a proven alternative to traditional brain surgery and whole brain radiation therapy, especially when treating complex brain conditions.
02.
No incisions
The Gamma Knife is not a knife. There is no cutting or incisions. Gamma Knife radiosurgery replaces a surgeon’s scalpel with around 192 pre-determined, invisible, intersecting gamma ray beams of radiation to accurately deliver a high therapeutic dose to a precise target in a patient’s brain.
03.
High precision
Computerized treatment planning software helps our specialist, multidisciplinary team map out and irradiate small targets with high precision. With this precision, Gamma Knife delivers intense radiation doses to the target where it is needed while consistently limiting damage to surrounding healthy tissue. This means that side effects are kept to an absolute minimum.
04.
Gold standard
Gamma Knife radiosurgery is the only non-invasive radiosurgery system specifically engineered to only treat delicate brain tissue. It is referred to as the gold standard of intracranial radiosurgery because of its superior precision, accuracy and improved patient outcomes.
05.
Safety
Gamma Knife stereotactic radiosurgery is a safer alternative to traditional brain surgery (neurosurgery) in many cases.
06.
Excellent outcomes
The Gamma Knife has an excellent track record for stereotactic radiosurgery of the brain. Since 1967, when the first Gamma Knife prototype was used to treat a patient, Gamma Knife radiosurgery has delivered a strong record of successful and safe treatments. This radiosurgery consistently produces excellent outcomes.
Conditions treated
The common conditions treated include:
The Gamma Knife can also be used to treat functional conditions that have failed conventional treatment such as:
Tremors (essential tremor, Parkinson’s)
Some types of epilepsy
Out-patient basis
With Gamma Knife radiosurgery, patients are seldom admitted to hospital and typically go home the same day. Only in rare instances is a general anaesthetic needed. Most patients return to their everyday routines a day or so after their treatment.
The expert team at Netcare’s Milpark hospital
South Africa’s only Gamma Knife is located at Netcare’s Milpark hospital in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Our multidisciplinary team comprises experienced neurosurgeons, radiation oncologists, medical physicists and biophysicists.
This dedicated team develops a unique treatment plan that is tailored to each patient’s clinical needs to ensure optimal treatment outcomes.
Success stories
Since 2017, some 1,000 patients have been treated at the Gamma Knife South Africa unit.
