Tumor recurrence and survival following gamma knife surgery for brain metastases.
OBJECTIVE
The authors evaluated prognostic factors for tumor recurrence and patient survival following gamma knife surgery (GKS) for brain metastasis.


METHODS
A retrospective review of 101 patient charts was undertaken for those patients treated with GKS for brain metastases from 1994 to 2001. Recurrence rates of brain metastasis following GKS depended on the duration of patient survival. Long-term survival was associated with a higher risk of tumor recurrence and shorter-term survival was associated with a lower risk. The duration of survival following GKS for brain metastases seems to be characteristic of the primary disease rather than the cerebral disease.


CONCLUSIONS
Recurrence rates of brain metastasis following GKS are related to duration of survival, which is in turn mostly dependent on the nature and course of the primary tumor.
Mindermann
Thomas
T
Gamma Knife Center Zurich, Klinik Im Park, Zurich, Switzerland. thomas.mindermann@freesurf.ch
D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D002289:Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D017567:Karnofsky Performance Status; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D008545:Melanoma / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000453:epidemiology; D016609:Neoplasms, Second Primary / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D011829:Radiation Dosage; D016634:Radiosurgery / Q000379:methods*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D015996:Survival Rate; D013997:Time Factors