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Now patients in Maryland diagnosed with prostate cancer, have a new, nonsurgical treatment option. Staff at the Sinai Hospital CyberKnife Center has successfully treated their first case of prostate cancer using this stereotactic radiosurgery system.

"The accuracy of the CyberKnife allows for a significantly reduced area of radiation in the normal tissue surrounding the prostate,” said Keith O'Reilly, M.D., head of the Prostate Cancer Program at the CyberKnife Center. "By using larger doses of radiation  over a shorter time period, we are able to reduce the side effects compared to traditional treatments.”

Sinai Hospital is the first medical center in Maryland to use CyberKnife to treat prostate cancer. Prostate cancer is the leading diagnosis of cancer in men  affecting one out of six men in the United States, and the second leading cause of death in men; the American Cancer Society estimated that more than 234,000 new cases of prostate cancer were diagnosed in 2006.

The CyberKnife radiation therapy system uses near real-time tracking to locate the precise position of the tumor in the body. In combination with the Synchrony® Respiratory Tracking System, a high-energy X-ray source mounted on the robotic arm delivers extremely focused beams of radiation to the tumor. This highly targeted technique allows the maximum amount of radiation to be delivered to the tumor, while protecting surrounding healthy tissue from damage.

Traditional treatment options for patients with early-stage prostate cancer include surgery; external beam radiation; and brachytherapy, which is radioactive seed implantation. With CyberKnife, treatment is significantly shortened to five treatments over the course of a week from a normally lengthy treatment course of 37 doses of traditional external beam radiation given over nearly eight weeks.

The results of using CyberKnife to treat prostate cancer have been well documented and are quite impressive. More than three years of data, complied from varies CyberKnife centers across the country, have found that with only five treatments with CyberKnife, PSA levels fall more rapidly and there is a lower incidence of urinary, bowel and erectile side effects than with traditional treatment options.

To help further refine and improve techniques and outcomes with the treatment of prostate cancer, The Sinai CyberKnife Center is participating in a national clinical trial with institutions, including the Swedish Hospital of Seattle and Beth Israel in Boston.

"The continued growth of the CyberKnife Center reflects Sinai Hospital's dedication to providing patients with a variety of highly effective cutting-edge treatment options,” said Mark Brenner, M.D., chief of Radiation Oncology at Sinai Hospital and medical director of the CyberKnife Center.

The CyberKnife Center is part of theAlvin & Lois Lapidus Cancer Institute, which offers cancer patients the most advanced diagnosis and treatment for a wide range of cancers. Sinai Hospital and Northwest Hospital's vision of coordinated, multidisciplinary oncology care places the patient and family at the center of a coordinated set of services and specialists who work on behalf of the patient.

Sinai Hospital is a member of LifeBridge Health, a regional health organization that includes Northwest Hospital Center, Levindale Hebrew Geriatric Center and Hospital, Jewish Convalescent & Nursing Home, and related subsidiaries and affiliates.

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