New Cyber Knife Cancer Treatment At St. Elizabeth’s

There's a new weapon in the fight against cancer, and St. Elizabeth's Regional Medical Center is the only hospital in Nebraska to offer it.  Called the Cyber Knife, it's a revolutionary treatment because doctors say this is the option when there are no options.

It's a high dose radiation delivered with precision, giving cancer patients, all of the benefits, and fewer side effects.

“They did a CAT scan, she was thinking it was a blood clot it turned out to be a tumor,” Mary Hawkins said.

Diagnosed with lung cancer in November, Mary Hawkins was already very familiar with the disease.  She had buried her husband 3 months earlier.  Hawkins' husband underwent chemotherapy, at this point doctors say it was not an option for her.  And because her tumor seen here was so close to her heart, neither was surgery or conventional radiation.

Then she learned about the Cyber Knife.  Pulmonologist Dr. Kevin Reichmuth says “It's been a major addition to treatment, having a more targeted therapy like the Cyber Knife.”

While the name may imply cutting, it's a non-invasive painless, high beam of radiation is delivered with pinpoint accuracy directly to tumors, sparing healthy surrounding tissue.

It was perfect for patients like Hawkins, who saw her once inoperable tumor, blasted apart.

Doctors say the accuracy is unmatched by any current radiotherapy treatments for cancer patients who often times say the treatment can be as damaging as the cancer itself. Cyber Knife carries very few side effects.  Hawkins says it just made her a little bit tired.