“When I was told that I had to have an open surgery on my head, I felt even more scared that when I was first told I had a brain tumor…Fotunately, there is now an alternative – CyberKnife!” Ms. Ting (Meningioma)

Ms. Ting lives in Hong Kong, but when I first contacted her, she was at her place of work on the Mainland. I was amazed when I heard her cheerful laughter on the telephone because she didn’t sound like a patient at all.

Two years ago, Ms. Ting found out that she had a brain tumor. The tumor was situated next to the optic nerve, presenting the real risk of loss of vision. Due to her positive nature and general optimism, Ms. Ting refused to give up and continued looking for the best treatment available. However, each doctor she consulted assured her ‘open surgery’ was her only option.

“Since the tumor was beneath the front of my brain, the doctors sated they would have to open my head form above, extending the incision to the area near my ear. Next, they would prop my brain up and remove the tumor. After I was told these details, I was even more depressed than when I first found out about the tumor.”

Appearances are important to women, and Ms. Ting is no exception. “I have a friend who underwent open brain surgery. It took her a very long time to recover, plus, she had to have her head shaved, and she was left with a very long scar on the left side of her head. If the surgery had gone wrong, it could have left her with injury to one or more cranial nerves!” Sue to these concerns, Ms. Ting was very worried and chose to avoid having treatment.

Fortunately, Ms. Ting heard about CyberKnife Center, and was most impressed by the option of non-invasive treatment. “After 5 treatments, my tumor was much smaller, and the headaches which had bothered me for many years have now completely gone. I am really happy.”

A few weeks after the treatment, Ms. Ting went back to the mainland to resume her business. “I am still very young and need to make a living. There is now ay that I will stop working because of the treatment. If I had chosen to have open surgery, I am afraid I would still be in bed resting. Fortunately, by undergoing CyberKnife radiosurgery, the impact on my life and work has been minimal.

“I am over 70 years old. If receiving treatment means a large wound on my head, I would rather not have any treatment at all!”

Three years ago, 71-year-old Mr. hung realized he had a hearing problem. His sleep was disturbed by a persistent annoying sound in his head. Some time later he noticed his left eye had begun to water, and his left arm and leg had become shaky. “I love going to a Chinese restaurant in the morning, but I found I could scarcely hold the tea pot, and I thought I must be having a stoke!”

Subsequently, Mr. Hung’s children arranged for him to undergo a series of investigations, which revealed he had an acoustic tumor on the nerve to the inner-ear. However, Mr. Hung had serious reservations about undergoing any form of open surgery.

“The doctor state open surgery was necessary, but that the success rate way only 50% in view of my age. I was 71 at that time, and really didn’t want a large cut on my head. The treatment sounded terrible, so I would not agree to the operation. I decided to give up, even if it meant I only had one year, or even one month left to live.”

However, Mr. Hung’s daughter did not give up and kept searching for a better treatment option for her father. This year, she learned about the CyberKnife Center, and Mr. Hung finally agreed to undergo the necessary treatment, due to the non-invasive method employed. “When I heard that there was no need to open my head, I said yes immediately.”

After three treatments, the tumor is shrinking. Mr. Hung’s eye no longer waters, and his limbs are no longer shaky. “Now I can eat, I can walk, I can sleep well, and I can even play Mahjong in my free time!”

“CyberKnife is my last hope!” Mr. Pun (Spinal AVM)

Some 22 years ago spinal AVM patient Mr. Pun was told, “We might not be able to help you. You need a miracle.”

Two years later, Mr. Pun began to suffer severe headaches and nausea. “I tried both Western and Chinese medicine, but neither has any help. After suffering for two years and consulting more than 10 doctors, I finally found out that I had a spinal Arterio-Venous-Malformation (AVM).” Mr. Pun underwent several operations, but did not regain the ability to walk.

Recently, his situation worsened. He became unable to move his left arm and leg and was really crippled. Some days he could do nothing but lie in bed. His doctor stated that it would be too dangerous to perform more surgery, “The doctor told me that AVM tumor was next to a large artery, and that open surgery could damage the artery, or even kill me.”

Mr. Pun reconciled himself to being “incurable” after the doctor told him, that all he could do was to hope for a miracle. Fortunately, Mr. Pun didn’t have to wait very long. Following the opening of the CyberKnife Center in 2006, Mr. Pun was referred to Hong Kong Adventist Hospital, “I realized that this was my last hope, so I mad the decision to have the treatment immediately.”

After three CyberKnife treatments, the tumor has shrunk, and Mr. Pun is regaining the ability to walk.

“The treatment is really simple. After the first treatment, I even went to Lau Fau Shan to have seafood with my husband and my friends.” Hilda (Lung Cancer with Brain metastases)

The doctor told me, “you have final-stage lung cancer and you could possibly only have 3 months left to live. Treatment or no treatment will not make much difference.” It sounds just like a TV drama, but this actually happened to Hilda. She was told that she had advanced lung cancer and that the cancer had already spread to her brain, with a total of 5 tumors.

“The doctor did not give my husband any hope, and said he should prepare for the inevitable.” However, Hilda’s husband, who is also a doctor, refused to give up hope and kept searching on the internet for beneficial treatment. Subsequently, he discovered that the latest model of CyberKnife had been introduced to Hong Kong at the Hong Kong Adventist Hospital.

Following CyberKnife treatment and chemotherapy for about one month, there was no evidence of residual tumors found in Hilda’s brain. Her blood tests had also returned to normal.

Hilda said she owed it all to her loving husband and this amazing new technology. “I really want to thank CyberKnife. It is such a comfortable form of treatment. All I had to do was lie down and sleep. No Injection was required, and when I woke up, I was told that the treatment was all over.

“If I have a choice, I will always choose the safest treatment option!” Joanna (Meningioma)

Joanna was sent to A&E after she experienced numbness down the right side of her body. Following a series of investigations, she was shown to have a brain tumor. The tumor was already 4.1cm in diameter and her situation was quite critical.

Her doctor advised her to undergo open surgery on her head, but this made her very worried, “We were talking about opening my head! I knew this could cause serious complications and there were too many uncertainties. I didn’t want to take that risk.”

In the end, Joanna chose to use the non-invasive CyberKnife treatment. After 5 treatments, the tumor has shrunk. “Looking back, it was a wise choice to have CyberKnife, otherwise, I would still be in bed recovering.”