Save a Life

Exceptional Cancer Care at St. Mary Medical Center

Every day in the Bucks County area, thousands of lives are affected by cancer — it is the second leading cause of illness and mortality. For patients and families affected by this disease, St. Mary's goal is to provide the best possible health care close to home. This means patients spend less time traveling for treatment and more time in their normal surroundings with the support of their families.

Advances in Cancer Care: Stereotactic Radiosurgery

In 2009, the area of greatest need at St. Mary is for Advances in Cancer Care — Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS) — the next step in a progression of advanced developments in radiation therapy for cancer and neurology at the medical center. It will help save lives — this radiation treatment is an important alternative to invasive surgery, especially for tumors and blood vessel abnormalities located deep within or close to vital areas of the brain.

St. Mary will utilize Frameless SRS which monitors and compensates for movement, allowing the patient to lie comfortably during the treatment. It alleviates the need to have a frame attached to pins in the patient's head while still assuring absolute accuracy in treatment. St. Mary will be the only cancer treatment facility to utilize this Frameless technology in the Delaware Valley area.

SRS treats brain disorders with a precise delivery of a single high dose of radiation in a one-day session. Focused radiation beams are delivered to a specific area of the brain or spine to treat abnormalities, tumors or functional disorders. SRS is also beneficial in treating a variety of non-cancerous conditions including benign tumors, functional disorders, and tumors and lesions of the spine.

SRS (one-session treatment) has such a dramatic effect in the target zone that the changes are considered "surgical." Through the use of three-dimensional computer-aided planning and monitoring, the treatment minimizes the amount of radiation that passes through healthy brain tissue, ensuring the best possible outcomes for cancer survival.